John  C.   Lynch. 


MEMORIAL  ADDRESSES 


LIFE  AND  CHARACTER 


LELAND  STANFORD, 

(A    SENATOR    FROM  CALIFORNIA), 


DELIVERED    IN    THE 


SENATE  AND  HOUSE  OE  REPRESENTATIVES, 


SEPTEMBER  16,  1893,  AND  FEBRUARY  12,  1894. 


PUBLISHED    BY    ORDER    OF    CONGRESS. 


WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT    PRINTING  OFFICE. 
1894. 


Resolved  by  the  Senate  (the  House  of  Representatives  concurring),  That  there 
be  printed  of  the  eulogies  delivered  in  Congress  upon  the  Hon.  LELAND 
STANFORD,  late  a  Senator  from  the  State  of  California,  8,000  copies,  of  which 
2,000  copies  shall  be  delivered  to  the  Senators  and  Representatives  of  that 
State,  and  of  the  remaining  number  2,000  shall  be  for  the  use  of  the  Sen 
ate  and  4,000  copies  for  the  use  of  the  House,  and  of  the  quota  of  the  Sen 
ate  the  Public  Printer  shall  set  aside  50  copies,  which  he  shall  have  bound 
in  full  morocco  with  gilt  edges,  the  same  to  be  delivered  when  completed 
to  the  widow  of  the  deceased;  and  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  is  hereby 
directed  to  have  engraved  and  printed  at  the  earliest  day  practicable  a 
portrait  of  the  deceased  to  accompany  said  eulogies. 
2 


373  US 


CONTENTS. 


Page. 

Biographical  sketch  of  Senator  Stanford g 

Funeral  ceremonies  at  Palo  Alto 15 

Address  of  Rev.  Horatio  Stebbins,  r>.  D 22 

PROCEEDINGS  IN  THE  SENATE. 

The  announcement  of  his  death 27 

The  resolutions  adopted 29 

Address  of  Mr.  White,  of  California 29 

Mr.  Dolph,  of  Oregon 32 

Mr.  Peffer,  of  Kansas 39 

Mr.  Mitchell,  of  Oregon 42 

Mr.  Daniel,  of  Virginia . .  2f?7*V.  ^.- .-; 44 

-  Mr.  Stewart,  of  Nevada  Jfe^?^*M  ..).'...'. 59 

'  Mr.  Vest,  of  Missouri .  .&'.  . '.  '.  3'. . .•£/.- 63 

Mr.  Perkins,  of  California 68 

PROCEEDINGS  IN  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES. 

The  resolutions  adopted 79 

Address  of  Mr.  Tracey,  of  New  York : 80 

Mr.  Hilbom,  of  California 81 

Mr.  Sibley,  of  Pennsylvania 87 

Mr.  Blair,  of  New  Hampshire 97 

Mr.  Wheeler,  of  Alabama 101 

Mr.  Pickler,  of  South  Dakota 106 

Mr.  Bowers,  of  California 114 

Mr.  Wise,  of  Virginia 116 

Mr.  Loud,  of  California 121 

3 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 


LELAND  STANFORD,  a  Senator  from  California,  died  at  his 
residence  on  the  Palo  Alto  estate,  California,  a  few  minutes 
before  midnight,  Tuesday,  June  20, 1893.  His  health  for  some 
years  had  not  been  good,  but  there  was  no  intimation  of  his 
approaching  end.  During  the  day  he  pursued  his  accustomed 
avocations;  took  his  usual  drive  around  his  stock  farm  and 
visited  some  neighbors;  made  no  complaint  of  feeling  indis 
posed,  and  retired  to  rest  about  10  o'clock.  Shortly  before 
midnight  Mrs.  Stanford,  who  occupied  an  adjoining  apartment, 
was  awakened  by  a  movement  in  Mr.  STANFORD'S  room.  He 
had  thrown  oft'  the  bedclothing  and  made  an  effort  to  rise. 
She  spoke  to  him  and  received  no  response.  His  breathing 
was  unnatural  and  stertorous,  and  in  a  few  minutes  he  passed 
away  peacefully  and  apparently  without  pain. 

LELAND  STANFORD  was  one  of  the  most  wonderful  men 
this  country  has  produced,  and  the  story  of  his  career  is  inter 
esting  and  instructive  from  his  boyhood  to  his  death.  He  was 
born  at  Watervliet,  N.  Y.,  8  miles  from  Albany,  March  9, 1824 
He  was  of  English  stock,  though  with  Irish  blood  on  the 
father's  side.  His  father,  Josiah  Stanford,  a  native  of  Massa 
chusetts,  had  removed  to  New  York  with  his  parents  when  4 
years  of  age.  His  mother  was  Miss  Phillips,  whose  parents 
had  moved  from  Massachusetts  to  Vermont  and  from  Vermont 
to  New  York. 

Josiah  Stanford  lived  for  many  years  at  a  farm  called  Elm 
Grove,  on  the  road  from  Albany  to  Schenectady,  and  was  an 

5 


6  Biographical  Sketch. 

intelligent,,  industrious,  and  progressive  farmer,  who  also  pur 
sued  the  business  of  a  contractor,  built  a  portion  of  the  turn 
pike  between  Albany  and  Schenectady,  constructed  roads  and 
bridges  in  his  neighborhood,  was  an  alert  business  man,  a 
public-spirited  citizen,  and  was  an  early  and  enthusiastic 
advocate  of  the  construction  of  the  Erie  Canal. 

In  1829  the  legislature  of  New  York  granted  a  charter  for  a 
railroad  between  Albany  and  Scheuectady,  and  Josiah  Stan 
ford  was  one  of  the  principal  contractors  for  building  this 
road.  A  railroad  was  an  attractive  novelty  in  those  days,  and 
this  road  passed  so  near  the  home  of  the  Stanfords  that  LELAND 
STANFORD  passed  his  holidays  in  watching  the  work,  and 
even  at  that  early  day  acquired  a  knowledge  of  railroad  con 
struction  that  was  of  service  to  him  in  later  years.  The 
conversation  at  the  home  of  Josiah  Stanford  was  elevating 
and  inspiring.  His  visitors  were  men  engaged  in  the  con 
struction  of  large  works,  who  were  alive  to  the  great  possi 
bilities  of  future  development  of  transportation  routes  and 
were  not  daunted  by  the  magnitude  of  any  project.  Among 
the  subjects  of  discussion  in  those  days  and  by  those  men  was 
the  project  of  a  railroad  to  Oregon.  LELAND  STANFORD  was 
present  at  one  of  these  discussions.  "Young  as  he  was  when 
the  question  of  a  railroad  to  Oregon  was  first  agitated,"  it  is 
written,  "LELAND  STANFORD  took  a  lively  interest  in  the 
measure.  Among  its  chief  advocates  at  that  early  day  was 
Mr.  Whitney,  one  of  the  engineers  in  the  construction  of  the 
Mohawk  and  Hudson  Eiver  Eailway.  On  one  occasion,  when 
Whitney  passed  the  night  at  Elm  Grove,  LELAND  being  then 
13  years  of  age,  the  conversation  ran  largely  on  this  overland 
railway  project,  and  the  effect  upon  the  mind  of  such  a  boy 
may  be  readily  imagined.  The  remembrance  of  that  night's 
discussion  between  Whitney  and  his  father  never  left  him,  but 
bore  the  grandest  fruits." 


Biographical  Sketch.  1 

Men  have  risen  to  the  highest  stations  in  this  country  whose 
boyhood  was  passed  in  much  humbler  homes  than  that  in 
which  LELAND  STANFORD  spent  the  years  of  his  youth.  Most 
of  our  great  men  have  come  from  the  farmhouse,  and  such 
homes,  however  humble,  are  free  from  the  squalor  and  cramp 
ing  meanness  to  be  found  among  the  homes  of  those  of  similar 
condition  in  older  civilizations.  Hope  is  the  heritage  and 
opportunity  the  reward  of  every  boy  of  courage  born  in  such 
surroundings.  Gartield  said  he  felt  like  taking  off  his  hat  to 
every  lad  he  met.  Who  knows  to  what  heights  such  a  one  may 
attain  in  this  country  where  no  classes  exist  to  bar  progress, 
where  education  is  free,  where  opportunities  are  unbounded? 
LELAND  STANFORD  received  the  education  of  the  farmer  boy. 
He  inherited  good  physical  and  mental  qualities,  and  was 
reared  in  a  home  where  there  were  no  idlers,  where  there  was 
little  luxury  but  no  want,  where  labor  was  honored  and  each 
had  his  task  appointed  for  him  to  do.  He  worked  on  the  farm 
with  his  father  and  his  brothers,  rising  as  early  as  5  o'clock 
of  a  winter's  morning.  He  attended  the  common  schools  until 
he  was  12  years  of  age,  and  for  three  years  received  instruc 
tion  at  home. 

He  then  assisted  his  father  in  carrying  out  a  contract  for 
the  delivery  of  a  large  quantity  of  wood.  This  was  his  first 
business  venture,  as  he  was  in  some  manner  a  partner  in  the 
enterprise  and  received  a  share  of  the  profit  with  which  he 
paid  for  his  tuition  at  an  academy  at  Clinton,  1ST.  Y.  He  had 
determined  to  study  law,  and  entered  the  office  of  Wheaton, 
Doolittle  &  Hadley,  at  Albany.  After  three  years  of  study  he 
was  admitted  to  the  bar. 

Mr.  STANFORD  had  determined  to  locate  in  the  West,  and 
after  visiting  various  places  he  finally  selected  Port  Washing 
ton,  Wis.,  as  best  suited  to  his  purpose,  and  there  established 
himself  in  1848,  and  entered  at  once  upon  the  practice  of  the 


8  Biographical  Sketch. 

law.  This  town,  now  of  1,700  population,  was  then  consid 
ered  by  many  to  be  the  port  of  the  lake  region  having  the  most 
promising  future  and  destined  to  eclipse  such  rivals  as  Mil 
waukee  and  Chicago.  Mr.  STANFORD  was  a  successful  lawyer, 
and  enjoyed,  in  the  estimation  of  the  community,  a  lucrative 
practice.  His  earnings  for  the  first  year  were  $1,260. 

In  1850  he  paid  a  visit  to  Albany,  and  while  there  married 
Miss  Jane  Lathrop,  the  daughter  of  Dyer  Lathrop.  a  merchant 
of  Albany,  whose  family  were  among  the  earliest  and  most 
respected  settlers  of  that  city.  Mr.  Lathrop  was  born  at 
Bozrah,  Conn.,  and  accompanied  his  parents  on  their  removal 
to  New  York,  when  he  was  about  7  years  of  age.  He  was  a 
man  noted  for  his  kindly  deeds ;  was  one  of  the  founders  in 
Albany  of  the  orphan  asylum,  and  was  treasurer  of  that 
institution  and  director  to  the  time  of  his  deatb. 

Mr.  STANFORD  returned  to  Port  Washington  with  his  wife 
and  continued  in  the  practice  of  his  profession  at  that  place 
until  1852,  when  a  misfortune  happened  to  him  which  changed 
the  course  of  his  life  and  proved  to  be  a  blessing  in  disguise. 
This  was  the  total  destruction  by  fire  of  his  office  with  all  of 
its  valuable  contents,  including  his  law  library,  which  was  one 
of  the  best  in  the  State  north  of  Milwaukee. 

Tidings  of  the  discovery  of  gold  in  California  had  come  to 
the  East  and  occasioned  great  excitement.  Five  of  the  seven 
sons  of  Josiah  Stanford  had  gone  to  California,  and  the  destruc 
tion  of  his  office  at  Port  Washington  determined  LELAND 
STANFORD  to  follow  them.  Mr.  STANFORD  closed  out  his 
affairs  in  Wisconsin,  took  his  wife  to  Albany,  where  she  was 
unable  to  persuade  her  father  to  let  her  accompany  her  husband 
to  share  with  him  the  hardships  of  life  in  a  new  country,  and 
where  she  remained  for  three  years,  attending  with  all  the 
devotion  of  a  loving  and  sympathetic  daughter  to  every  want 
of  her  father  through  a  long  illness  to  his  death  in  April,  1855. 


Biographical  Sketch,  9 

Mr.  STANFORD  sailed  from  New  York,  made  the  journey  by 
way  of  Nicaragua,,  spent  twelve  days  in  crossing  the  Isthmus 
and  thirty-eight  days  in  the  entire  trip.  He  arrived  at  San 
Francisco  July  12,  1852.  He  visited  his  brothers,  who  were 
engaged  in  a  general  merchandise  business  at  Sacramento, 
and  soon  after  entered  upon  a  mercantile  career  at  Cold  Springs, 
Eldorado  County.  The  following  spring  he  opened  a  store 
at  Michigan  Bluffs,  the  central  business  point  of  the  Placer 
County  mining  district. 

This  period  of  the  life  of  Mr.  STANFORD  was  passed  amongst 
the  privations,  the  hardships,  and  the  excitements  of  a  typical 
pioneer  mining  camp,  the  recollection  of  which  never  faded 
from  his  memory.  In  an  address  delivered  in  the  Senate  March 
25,  1892,  upon  the  life  and  character  of  his  late  colleague, 
Hon.  George  Hearst,  who  was  a  pioneer  of  California,  Mr. 
STANFORD  said: 

The  true  history  of  the  Argonauts  of  the  nineteenth  century  has  to  be 
written.  No  poet  has  yet  arisen  to  immortalize  their  achievements  in 
verse.  They  had  no  Jason  to  lead  them,  no  oracles  to  prophesy  success, 
nor  enchantments  to  avert  dangers;  but,  like  self-reliant  Americans,  they 
pressed  forward  to  the  land  of  promise,  and  traversed  thousands  of  miles 
where  the  Greek  heroes  traveled  hundreds.  They  went  by  ship  and  by 
wagon,  on  horseback  and  on  foot,  a  mighty  army,  passing  over  mountains 
and  deserts,-  enduring  privations  and  sickness;  they  were  the  creators  of 
a  commonwealth,  the  builders  of  States. 

Mr.  STANFORD  also  engaged  in  mining  operations  and  pros 
pered  in  them  and  in  his  business  to  such  an  extent  that  in 
1S55  he  purchased  the  business  of  his  brothers  in  Sacramento. 
The  same  year  he  proceeded  to  the  East  and  brought  Mrs. 
Stanford  to  California  and  established  his  home  in  Sacra 
mento. 

_ — -  »^~ 

Mr.  STANFORD  was  now  firmly  established.     The  house  in 

Sacramento  soon  ranked  among  the  leading  business  estab- 


10  Biographical  Sketch. 

lishments  of  California  and  the  management  of  its  affairs 
developed  a  capacity — heretofore  untried — for  dealing  with 
large  affairs. 

It  was  not  long  before  the  political  life  of  LELAND  STAN 
FORD  began.  The  Republican  party  was  organized  in  Call- 
forma  in  1856;  he  was  one  of  its  founders  in  that  State,  and 
gave  if  his  enthusiastic  support.  He  was  not  at  the  first  on 
the  popular  side.  At  the  next  election  after  the  birth  of  the 
Republican  party  in  California  lie  was  its  candidate  for  State 
treasurer  and  was  defeated. 

In  1859  he  was  the  candidate  for  governor,  received  1.1,000 
votes,  and  was  again  defeated.  In  1860  he  was  a  delegate  at 
large  to  the  Republican  National  Convention  and  was  an  ear 
nest  and  influential  advocate  of  the  nomination  of  Abraham 
Lincoln,  with  whom  he  formed  a  warm  and  lasting  friendship. 
At  the  request  of  President  Lincoln  he  remained  in  Washington 
several  weeks  after  the  inauguration.  He  enjoyed  the  confi 
dence  of  President  Lincoln,  who  frequently  consulted  him  as 
to  the  surest  methods  of  preserving  the  peace  and  loyalty  of 
California  and  its  adherence  to  the  Union  —  a  question  then 
filled  with  doubt  and  which  caused  much  anxiety  to  the  Presi 
dent  and  his  advisers. 

Mr.  STANFORD  was  again  made  the  Republican  candidate 
for  governor  in  1861,  and  after  a  bold,  vigorous,  and  thorough 
canvass  was  elected,  receiving  56,036  votes  against  32,750  votes 
for  Mr.  McConnell,  Administration  Democrat,  and  30.944  votes 
for  Mr.  Conuess,  Douglas  Democrat.  It  was  a  critical  period 
in  both  State  and  national  affairs  when  LELAND  STANFORD 
was  inaugurated  governor  of  California,  but  he  was  firm  and 
politic  and  prevented  the  outbreak  of  any  disturbance,  During 
his  term  the  militia  was  organized,  the  evils  of  squatterism 
abated,  a  State  normal  school  established,  and  the  indebted 
ness  of  the  State  reduced  one  half.  If  LELAND  STANFORD  had 


Biographical  Sketch,  11 

no  other  claim  to  remembrance,  his  services  as  war  governor  of 
California  would  cause  his  fame  to  be  handed  down  to  future 
ages. 

The  part  taken  by  Mr.  STANFORD  in  the  construction  of  the 
Central  Pacific  Kailroad  is  better  known  than  any  other  portion 
of  his  career.  As  a  boy  he  had  listened  with  interest  to  the. 
conversations  between  his  father  and  Mr.  Whitney  as  to  the 
possibility  of  the  construction  of  a  railroad  to  Oregon,  and  in 
after  years  kept  himself  informed  on  the  subject  and  of  articles 
relating  to  it  which  were  published  in  the  newspapers.  During 
his  voyage  to  California  with  Mrs.  Stanford,  who  was  sick,  he 
said  to  her:  " Never  mind;  a  time  will  come  when  I  will  build 
a  railroad  for  you  to  go  home  on."  He  did  not  originate  the 
idea  of  a  Pacific  railroad — he  executed  it.  In  1860  he  heard 
of  the  examination  which  Theodore  D.  Judah,  an  engineer, 
had  made  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains  to  determine  a 
practicable  route  for  a  railroad.  Not  long  afterwards  he  had 
a  conversation  with  C.  P.  Huntington,  a  hardware  merchant 
of  Sacramento,  on  the  subject  of  a  railroad  from  California 
to  the  East.  Another  meeting  was  held  and  a  third,  at  which 
Mark  Hopkins  was.  present.  The  result  of  these  conferences 
was  a  determination  to  look  further  into  the  feasibility  of  the 
project.  Mr.  Judah,  an  engineer  of  ability,  energy,  and  intre 
pidity,  and  an  enthusiastic  believer  in  the  possibility  of  build 
ing  a  railroad  across  the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains,  was  called 
into  consultation.  As  the  result  of  the  information  furnished 
by  him  and  that  obtained  from  others  it  was  determined  to 
send  out  Judah,  with  the  necessary  assistants,  to  make  a 
preliminary  survey,  and  a  fund  was  raised  for  this  purpose. 
This  was  the  beginning  of  the  great  corporation.  The  men 
who  started  this  mighty  enterprise  were  all  merchants  of 
Sacramento,  except  Theodore  D.  Judah ,  the  engineer.  They 
were  LELAND  STANFORD,  Collis  -P.  Huntington,  Charles 


12  Biographical  Sketch, 

Crocker,  Mark  Hopkins,  and  James  Bailey.  The  physical 
difficulties  were  considered  by  many  engineers  to  be  insur 
mountable;  others  thought  that  if  the  road  could  be  built  at 
all  the  cost  would  be  so  great  that  the  necessary  funds  could 
never  be  secured ;  but  great  as  were  the  physical  difficulties 
the  financial  difficulties  were  not  less  appalling. 

Incorporated  in  1801  under  the  general  law  of  the  State  of 
California  as  the  Central  Pacific  Railroad  Company,  the  project 
was  still  in  a  condition  giving  little  hope  of  success  until  the 
passage  by  Congress  of  the  act  of  July  1, 1862,  entitled  "An  act 
to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  railroad  and  telegraph  line  from 
the  Missouri  River  to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  to  secure  to  the 
Government  the  use  of  the  same  for  postal,  military,  and  other 
purposes."  This  act  incorporated  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad 
Company  and  granted  to  ir  ufor  the  purpose  of  aiding  in  the 
construction  of  said  railroad  and  telegraph  line,  and  to  secure 
the  safe  and  speedy  transportation  of  the  mails,  troops,  muni 
tions  of  war,  and  public  stores  thereon,"  every  alternate  section 
of  public  land,  designated  by  odd  numbers,  to  the  amount  of 
five  alternate  sections  per  mile  on  each  side  of  said  road  "not 
sold,  reserved,  or  otherwise  disposed  of  by  the  United  States, 
and  to  which  a  preemption  or  homestead  claim  may  not  have 
attached  at  the  time  the  line  of  said  road  is  definitely  fixed." 
Mineral  land  was  exempted  from  the  operation  of  the  act.  The 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury  was  authorized  to  issue  to  the  com 
pany,  upon  the  completion  and  equipment  of  40  consecutive 
miles  of  the  railroad  and  telegraph,  bonds  of  the  United  States, 
payable  thirty  years  after  date  and  bearing  interest  at  the  rate 
of  G  per  cent  per  annum,  to  the  amount  of  $16,000  a  mile,  and 
;it  ."32,000  and  848,000  a  mile  for  certain  sections  through  the 
mountains.  Those  bonds  were  to  constitute  a  first  mortgage 
upon  the  property  of  the  company.  , 

The  Central  Pacific  Railroad   Company  of  California   was 


Biographical  Sketch.  13 

authorized  to  construct  a  railroad  and  telegraph  liue  from  the 
Pacific  coast,  at  or  near  San  Francisco  or  the  navigable 
waters  of  the  Sacramento  River,  to  the  eastern  boundary  of 
California  upon  the  same  terms  and  conditions  in  all  respects 
as  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  Company.  The  Central  Pacific 
Railroad  Company  was  required  to  complete  50  miles  of  its 
road  within  two  years  after  filing  assent  to  the  provisions  of 
the  act  and  50  miles  annually  thereafter,  and  was  authorized, 
after  completing  its  road  across  California,  to  continue  the  con 
struction  of  a  railroad  and  telegraph  line  through  the  Terri 
tories  of  the  United  States  to  the  Missouri  River,  or  until  it 
met  and  connected  with  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad. 

By  act  of  July  2,  1864,  these  provisions  were  materially 
amended;  the  time  for  designating  the  general  route,  for  filing 
map  of  the  same,  and  of  building  the  part  of  these  roads  first 
required  to  be  constructed  was  extended  one  year;  the  Cen 
tral  Pacific  was  required  to  complete  annually  25  instead  of  50 
miles  and  the  whole  line  to  the  State  line  within  four  years. 
The  land  granted  was  increased  from  five  to  ten  alternate  sec 
tions  within  the  limits  of  20  instead  of  10  miles  on  each  side. 
It  was  provided  that  only  one-half  of  the  compensation  for 
services  rendered  for  the  Government  should  be  required  to  be 
applied  to  the  payment  of  the  bonds  issued  by  the  Govern 
ment  in  aid  of  the  construction  of  the  road.  When  a  section 
of  20  instead  of  40  miles  was  completed  bonds  might  be  issued 
to  the  company.  The  provision  for  the  withholding  of  a  por 
tion  of  the  bonds  authorized  by  the  act  of  July  1,  1862,  until 
the  completion  of  the  whole  road  was  repealed.  Special  pro 
vision  was  made  for  the  issue  of  bonds  in  advance  of  the  com 
pletion  of  the  sections  in  the  regions  of  the  mountains — the 
most  costly  and  difficult  part  of  the  line.  But  the  most  impor 
tant  provision  of  the  act  was  the  one  authorizing  the  company, 
on  the  completion  of  each  section  of  its  road,  to  issue  its  own 


14  Biographical  Sketch. 

first-mortgage  bonds  to  an  amount  not  exceeding  the  bonds  of 
the  United  States  and  making  the  bonds  of  the  United  States 
subordinate  to  the  bonds  of  the  company. 

The  work  of  construction  was  begun  upon  the  Central  Pacific 
Railroad  January  8, 1863,  when  LELAND  STANFORD,  president 
of  the  company,  turned  the  first  shovelful  of  earth,  and  in  May, 
1809,  the  Central  Pacific  and  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  com 
panies  united  at  Promontory  Point;  and  LELAND  STANFORD 
drove  the  last  spike  in  the  line  of  railroad  connecting  the  Pacific 
and  the  Atlantic  oceans  and  binding  together  the  eastern  and 
the  western  sections  of  the  country. 

Space  does  not  permit  the  recital  of  the  difficulties  that 
were  met  and  overcome  by  the  builders  of  the  Central  Pacific 
Railroad  in  carrying  to  completion  their  mighty  undertaking. 
A  just  conception  of  the  difficulties  of  a  great  enterprise  can 
not  be  formed  by  one  who  considers  it  for  the  first  time  after 
it  has  been  successfully  accomplished.  The  lack  of  interest 
in  communities  that  were  to  be  benefited,  the  unwillingness  of 
the  financial  leaders  of  California  to  invest  in  the  enterprise, 
the  opposition  of  hostile  interests  were  never  overcome;  but 
with  a  courage  that  never  faltered  and  an  ability  that  rose 
equal  to  the  difficulties  as  they  presented  themselves  this 
quartette  of  wonderful  men  —  STANFORD,  Hunting-ton,  Crocker, 
Hopkins — persevered  until  they  had  conquered  success.  It 
was  a  gigantic  enterprise  managed  by  men  of  remarkable 
ability,  the  peculiar  ability  of  one  in  a  particular  sphere  of 
action  supplementing  the  peculiar  ability  of  another  in  another 
sphere  and  all  working  in  harmony  for  the  common  purpose. 
From  the  beginning  to  the  end,  however,  the  master  mind  and 
the  master  will  were  those  of  LELAND  STANFORD. 

Upon  the  doubtful  chance  of  success  these  men  ventured 
the  moderate  fortunes  which  they  possessed.  LELAND  STAN 
FORD  realized  a  colossal  fortune,  but  with  the  attainment  of 


Biographical  Sketch,  15 

great  wealth  his  labors  did  not  cease.  He  continued  to  be  the 
president  of  the  company  until  1885.  The  management  of  this 
great  corporation  and  of  the  connecting-  lines  which  it  acquired 
kept  him  constantly  employed.  In  addition  to  the  work  of  the 
railroad  Mr.  STANFORD  had  the  care  and  direction  of  his 
extensive  landed  estates.  He  became  the  largest  land  owner 
in  California.  His  home  was  on  the  Palo  Alto  estate  of  7,200 
acres,  and  he  also  owned  the  Gridley  farm  of  20,000  acres,  and 
the  great  Vina  ranch  of  55,000  acres.  These  places  he  im 
proved  to  such  an  extent  that  they  became  among  the  most 
valuable  and  productive  tracts  of  land  in  the  world. 

Mr.  STANFORD  wTas  very  much  interested  in  the  development 
of  the  trotting  horse,  and  owned  the  famous  Electioneer,  sire 
of  many  of  the  fastest  horses  in  America,  among  them  being 
Sunol,  2:08J,  and  Palo  Alto,  2:08f. 

The  great  sorrow  of  Mr.  STANFORD'S  life  came  in  1884,  when 
his  only  child,  Leland  Stanford,  jr.,  died.  He  was  a  youth  of 
great  promise  and  many  attractive  qualities,  the  idol  of  his 
father  and  of  his  mother.  While  traveling  in  Europe  with 
his  parents  he  was  attacked  with  a  fever  and  died  at  Florence, 
Italy,  March  13,  1884,  in  the  fifteenth  year  of  his  age.  He 
died  in  the  flower  of  youth,  but  his  memory  is  perpetuated  for 
ever  in  the  noble  institution  of  learning  which  bears  his  name. 

The  Lelaud  Stanford  Junior  University  is  situated  upon 
the  Palo  Alto  estate,  in  Santa  Clara  County,  Cal.,  and  is 
distant  about  30  miles  from  San  Francisco.  November  11, 
1885,  LELAND  STANFORD  and  Jane  Lathrop  Stanford,  his 
wife,  united  in  founding  and  endowing  a  university  for  both 
sexes  to  be  called  the  Leland  Stanford  Junior  University,  to 
be  located  at  Palo  Alto.  The  estates  granted  included  the 
Palo  Alto  farm,  the  Gridley  farm,  and  the  Vina  farm,  aggre 
gating  83,000  acres  of  land.  The  total  endowment  of  the  uni 
versity  in  land  and  money  was  estimated  to  be  $20,000,000. 


16  Biographical  Sketch. 

The  university  has  for  several  years  been  iii  successful 
operation  and  is  destined  to  become  one  of  the  foremost 
seats  of  learning  in  the  world.  In  munificence  of  ^owmdiit 
it  is  unrivaled  in  the  history  of  the  world.  In  a "  ""ition  to 
its  endowment  fund  it  has  a  legacy  of  wise  counsels  from 
its  founder.  He  enjoyed  the  uncommon  privilege  of  living 
to  witness  the  realization  of  the  cherished  idea  of  his  old 
age  and  of  seeing  the  university,  the  monument  of  the  affec 
tion  which  he  bore  his  son,  take  a  place  among  the  leading 
universities  of  the  world.  He  saw  it  fully  organized  and 
equipped,  its  halls  thronged  with  students,  its  reputation 
firmly  established,  its  usefulness  and  its  influences  extend 
ing  year  by  year.  Who  can  measure  the  results  of  such  a 
gift? 

The  Leland  Stanford  Junior  University  opened  its  doors  in 
October,  1891,  with  over  500  students.  There  are  in  attend 
ance  the  current  year  over  700. 

From  the  inception  of  the  idea  of  founding  the  university, 
through  every  stage  of  its  development,  and  through  every 
period  of  its  operation,  Mrs.  Stanford  has  been  the  earnest,  the 
enthusiastic,  the  helpful  friend,  and  to  her  is  committed  the 
task,  left  in  part  uncompleted  by  her  husband,  of  still  further 
widening  its  influence  and  increasing  its  usefulness. 

In  1885  Mr.  STANFORD  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Senate. 
He  took  his  seat  March  4,  1885,  and  was  reelected  for  the  term 
ending  March  3,  1897.  Mr.  STANFORD  was  not  very  conspic 
uous  in  the  debates  in  the  Senate,  though  he  took  an  active 
interest  in  the  work  of  the  body  and  was  an  influential  mem 
ber  of  a  number  of  leading  committees.  His  name  will 
forever  be  associated  with  the  Laud-Loan  bill,  which  he  origi 
nated  and  presented  to  the  Senate.  His  addresses  on  this 
measure  have  been  quoted  in  works  on  political  economy  in 
every  language  of  civilization.  The  bill  proposed,  in  brief, 


Biographical  Sketch.  1 7 

that  money  should  be  issued  upon  land  to  half  the  amount  of 
its  value,  and  for  such  loan  the  Government  was  to  receive  an 
annual  ip^  "-est  of  2  per  centum.  Mr.  STANFORD  frequently 
stated  tljMjjb-if  the  measure  were  adopted  it  would,  in  time,  raise 
revenue  enough  to  pay  the  entire  expenses  of  the  Government, 
and  would  thus  take  the  tariff  question  out  of  politics  entirely. 
It  had  no  connection,  however,  with  what  is  known  as  the  Sub- 
Treasury  plan,  which  proposed  the  issue  of  money  to  be  loaned 
on  perishable  products. 

The  high  estimates  formed  of  the  value  of  Mr.  STANFORD'S 
services  as  a  Senator  are  set  forth  in  the  appreciative  addresses 
of  his  associates  in  Congress  which  are  contained  in  this  vol 
ume. 

S.  Mis.  122 2 


-FUNERAL  CEREMONIES  AT  PALO  ALTO. 


The  funeral  of  LELAND  STANFORD  took  place  Saturday,  June 
25,  1893,  at  Palo  Alto,  Cal.  The  body  lay  in  the  room  in 
which  he  died — a  room  in  the  second  story  of  his  late  home— 
until  a  short  time  before  the  commencement  of  the  ceremonies. 
Only  a  few  of  the  most  intimate  friends  of  the  family  were 
admitted  to  the  house. 

The  body  had  been  placed  in  a  black-covered  casket  and 
removed  to  the  library  of  the  dwelling,  where  it  remained  until 
half  past  1  o'clock,  when  the  funeral  procession  was  formed. 
The  pall-bearers  and  intimate  friends  of  the  deceased  assembled 
at  the  house.  The  body  was  borne  to  the  place  of  funeral  by 
the  eight  engineers  oldest  in  point  of  service  in  the  Southern 
Pacific  Company.  Ranged  along  the  pathway  were  the  two 
hundred  employes  of  the  Palo  Alto  stock  farm. 

The  funeral  ceremonies  were  held  in  the  open  air  in  the 
quadrangle  of  the  Leland  Stanford  Junior  University  build 
ings.  At  one  end  of  the  Spanish  court  was  a  platform  upon 
which  the  casket  rested  during  the  services.  Chairs  and 
benches,  part  of  the  furniture  of  the  university,  were  placed 
upon  the  asphaltuin  pavement  in  front  of  the  platform  for  the 
accommodation  of  visitors. 

Clinging  to  the  sandstone  walls  and  reaching  to  the  tiles 
that  roof  the  arcade  were  growing  ivy  and  passion  vines.  The 

19 


20  Funeral  Ceremonies  at  Palo  Alto. 

collection  of  flowers  was  one  such  as  probably  lias  never  been 
equaled  on  such  an  occasion.  A  van  draped  in  white  and 
laden  with  magnificent  specimens  of  the  floral  wealth  of  Cali 
fornia  was  taken  to  the  quadrangle  and  ranged  in  front  of  the 
platform  which  served  as  a  chancel.  These  offerings  were 
from  various  societies  and  organizations  with  which  Mr.  STAN 
FORD  had  been  associated,  and  showed  that  sorrow  for  his 
death  pervaded  the  whole  community.  There  were  offerings 
from  the  Loyal  Legion,  the  Union  League  Club,  and  the  Stan 
ford  Parlor  of  the  Xative  Sons  of  the  Golden  West,  from  the 
employes  of  the  Southern  Pacific  Company  at  San  Francisco, 
from  the  Brotherhood  of  Locomotive  Engineers,  and  from  the 
Ladies'  Auxiliary  of  the  Brotherhood  of  Locomotive  Engineers. 
k'To  Labor's  Friend,"  "Our  Friend,"  were  the  inscriptions  on 
the  gifts  from  these  organizations.  A  floral  horse  was  the 
offering  of  the  employes  of  the  Palo  Alto  stock  farm.  It  was 
a  likeness  of  a  favorite  mare  of  the  dead  Senator.  Most  won 
derful  and  unique  of  all  was  the  gift  of  the  railroad  employes. 
It  was  a  locomotive  and  tender  iu  flowers,  fashioned  to  repre 
sent  one  of  the  first  locomotives  used  on  the  Central  Pacific 
Railway.  Formed  of  roses  and  lilies  and  sweet  peas  and 
yellow  pansies  was  the  locomotive,  and  the  tender  of  peas  of 
darker  hues,  while  yellow  pansies  represented  the  brasswork 
on  the  engine. 

At  the  corners  of  the  platform  stood  Norfolk  Island  pines, 
and  in  appropriate  arrangement  were  white  Easter  lilies  and 
sweet-pea  blossoms  and  anemones  and  ro.ses,  red  and  white. 

Amid  such  surroundings,  in  the  open  air,  in  the  shadow  of 
the  university  which  he  had  so  munificently  endowed,  the 
funeral  services  of  LELAND  STANFORD  were  held.  The 
audience  numbered  thousands.  Men  known  throughout  the 
State  were  noticeable  in  the  company  assembled,  men  known 
by  their  prominence  and  success  in  politics,  men  who  directed 


Funeral  Ceremonies  at  Palo  Alto.  21 

departments  of  the  great  railroad  of  which  LELAND  STAN 
FORD  for  nearly  thirty  years  was  president,  men  who  were  at 
the  head  of  the  professions,  men  who  direct  great  commercial 
enterprises.  Nor  were  the  men  who  toil  absent. 

The  casket  containing  the  remains  of  the  deceased  was 
borne  to  the  platform  by  pall-bearers  selected  in  accordance 
with  the  wish  expressed  by  Mr.  STANFORD.  They  were  the 
engineers  of  the  Southern  Pacific  Company  oldest  in  point  of 
service.  They  were  Sands  Clark,  C.  W.  Collins,  George  Col 
lins,  B.  Kelly,  W.  M.  Lacey,  J.  G.  Ressinge,  J.  E.  Saulpaugh, 
and  William  Scott.  The  honorary  pall-bearers  were  Col.  C.  F. 
Crocker,  Stephen  T.  Gage,  X.  T.  Smith,  W.  W.  Stow,  A.  N. 
Towne,  David  Starr  Jordan  (president  Lelaud  Stanford 
Junior  University),  Lloyd  Tevis,  W.  W.  Montague,  Harry  L. 
Dodge,  Charles  H.  Cuinmiugs,  Justice  McFarland,  Judge 
McKenna,  Judge  F.  E.  Spencer,  B.  F.  Lieb,  A.  L.  Tubbs,  Dr. 
C.  W.  Breyfogle,  Dr.  W.  H.  Harkness,  B.  U.  Steinman,  Frank 
McCoppin,  William  E.  Brown,  and  John  F.  Houghton. 

Mrs.  Stanford  was  escorted  by  her  brother,  Charles  Lathrop, 
and  was  accompanied  by  H.  C.  Nash,  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Taylor,  ex- 
Senator  and  Mrs.  Felton. 

Senators  White,  of  California,  Dolph  and  Mitchell,  of  Oregon, 
had  been  appointed  by.  the  Vice-President,  by  telegraph,  to 
attend  the  funeral  as  a  committee  of  the  Senate. 

The  casket  was  opened  and  thousands  looked  upon  the  face 
of  the  deceased. 

The  burial  service  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  was 
read  by  Eight  Reverend  William  Ford  Nichols,  bishop  of  the 
diocese  of  California,  and  the  scriptural  lesson  by  Rev.  Robert 
C.  Foute,  D.  D.,  rector  of  Grace  Church,  San  Francisco.  u  I 
heard  the  voice  of  Jesus"  was  sung  by  the  choir.  Bishop 
Nichols  read  a  prayer  and  Mrs.  Maromer  Campbell  sang  "  O 
Sweet  and  Blessed  Couutrv." 


22  Funeral  Ceremonies  at  Palo  Alto. 

Rev.  Horatio  Stebbins,  D.  D.,  pastor  of  the  First  Unitarian 
Church,  San  Francisco,  then  delivered  the  following  address: 

ADDRESS  OF  DR.  STEBBINS. 

DEAR  FRIENDS,  KIND  NEIGHBORS,  AND  RESPECTED  FEL 
LOW  CITIZENS —  BELOVED  ALL!  This  great  concourse  of 
people,  from  all  conditions  of  human  life,  gathered  within 
these  youthful  walls  of  youthful  learning,  at  an  unaccustomed 
hour  and  in  an  unaccustomed  place,  attests  that  a  conspic 
uous  figure  has  been  withdrawn  from  the  earthly  scene. 

The  occasion  is  not  for  eulogy  nor  biography.  The  events 
of  his  life,  from  the  farm  on  which  he  was  born,  through  early 
struggles  to  the  splendors  of  worldly  success,  and  the  last, 
simple  human  scene  in  the  dying  chamber,  are  known  to  us  all; 
and  it  would  be  impossible  for  eulogy,  whatever  eloquence  it 
might  employ,  to  strike  a  note  of  applause  or  sketch  the  scene 
of  action  in  colors  that  would  be  new,  or  give  new  impulse  to 
the  general  estimation  in  which  he  was  held  by  his  fellow  men. 
For  thirty  years  he  has  been  the  cynosure  of  all  eyes — a  par 
ticular  star  in  the  constellation  of  earthly  success — and  no 
voice  of  eloquence  or  power  raised  at  his  bier  to  day  would 
throw  any  new  light  on  the  scene  or  change  the  opinion  of  a 
single  mind.  It  was  Mr.  STANFORD'S  lot  to  stand  at  the  focus 
of  many  contentions,  and  to  be  praised  or  blamed  with  that 
decision  which  is  characteristic  of  interest  or  passion  rather 
than  of  reason  or  intelligence.  With  these  contentious  and 
judgments,  which  time  only  can  read  aright  from  the  imperfect 
records  of  good  and  evil,  I  am  not  concerned. 

In  every  life,  high  or  low,  rich  or  poor,  there  is  a  track  of 
light  that  reveals  the  inner  idea,  the  momentum  and  gravita 
tion  of  the  man.  Among  mixed  causes  he  obeys  a  final 
law  like  that  in  the  universe  of  worlds  that  keeps  the  stars 
from  wrong.  Mr.  STANFORD'S  powers  as  a  man  consisted  in 


Address  of  Dr.  Stebbins,  23 

that  combination  of  the  common  faculties  of  human  nature  that 
gives  good  sense  and  what  is  called  loug-headeduess,  united 
with  sincere  human  sympathies.  He  came  to  the  table-land  of 
life  among  the  terrible  splendors  of  a  new  era  of  the  country. 
His  star  was  in  the  horizon.  For  him  the  earth  turned,  suns 
rose  and  set,  winds  blew,  waters  flowed,  and  the  Nation's 
grief  and  weeping  History  opened  wide  the  gate  of  oppor 
tunity.  Opportunity!  —  the  tide  in  the  affairs  of  men  which, 
taken  at  the  flood,  carries  on  to  fortune.  No  man  can  be  rich 
by  his  own  simple  industry.  Time,  events,  and  circumstances 
must  favor  and  take  him  under  their  great  protection.  The 
line  between  the  man  and  his  opportunity  can  be  drawn  by  no 
hand  but  that  in  which  all  creatures  live. 

And  here  we  come  where  we  touch  the  very  nerve  and  quick 
of  a  man's  being.  How  does  he  behave  in  the  kingdom  of 
what  he  calls  his  own?  How  does  he  handle  his  property, 
which  war,  or  famine,  or  a  nation's  glory  helped  him  to  win? 
Does  he  fling  about  his  power  as  the  chartered  libertine  of 
self-will  or  voluntarily  abdicate  in  favor  of  a  higher  law?  A 
truly  noble  being  never  uses  power  as  power,  but  as  increased 
responsibility.  Here  is  the  moral  germ  of  all  possession,  which, 
by  little  and  little  putting  forth  its  eternal  strength,  like  a 
seed  'twixt  blocks  of  granite,  moves  the  foundations  of  the 
world,  transforming  the  nature  and  power  of  property  from 
age  to  age. 

Mr.  STANFORD'S  reputation  and  influence  will  not  rest  on  any 
public  office  that  he  ever  held;  neither  on  his  having  been  a 
central  figure,  amid  extraordinary  circumstances,  in  founding 
one  of  the  great  corporate  properties  of  the  country ;  but  on 
the  use  he  made  of  that  portion  of  the  great  property  that 
belonged  to  him.  That  is  the  keynote  of  his  character  as  it 
will  go  down  to  coming  generations.  It  would  be  idle,  of 
course,  to  contend  that  he  was  not  influenced  by  the  ordinary 


24  Funeral  Ceremonies  at  Palo  Alto. 

motives  of  men  or  did  not  pursue  the  ordinary  methods  of 
business.  But  what  effect  did  tne  ripening  process  of  life  and 
experience  have  on  his  mind  in  regard  to  his  property?  What 
was  the  final  moral  effect  and  outcome  of  it  all  ? 

The  moral  crisis  in  Mr.  STANFORD'S  life  was  the  death  of  his 
son  —  fair  boy,  on  whose  counterfeit  in  yonder  hall  the  youth 
of  coming  time  shall  look,  and  learn  that 't  was  his  translation 
that  reared  these  walls  and  illumined  these  skies  with  intel 
lectual  light.  That  event  o'erclouded  Mr.  STANFORD'S  heart, 
and  drew  the  sunbeams  out  of  the  day.  But,  strange  paradox 
of  human  experience,  darkness  reveals  light !  And  the  convic 
tion  is  borne  home  to  every  thoughtful  heart  that  there  must 
be  light  to  make  so  deep  a  shade.  That  darkness  was  cleft  by 
celestial  beams,  opening  to  his  vision  a  wider  day.  The  past, 
the  present,  and  the  future  flashed  on  his  mind,  illumined  his 
being,  and  the  vision  of  the  sacred  lyrist  dawned  before  him 
as  he  looked  down  the  vista  of  the  future: 

See  a  long  race  thy  spacious  courts  adorn ; 
See  future  sous  and  daughters  yet  unborn, 
In  crowding  ranks  ou  every  side  arise, 
Demanding  life,  impatient  for  the  skies. 

Mr.  STANFORD  conceived  education  as  the  theme  of  the 
world — the  business  of  God.  Education!  A  vague  expression, 
often,  in  the  common  mind,  but  which,  in  its  complete  and  in 
clusive  sense,  is  that "  process  of  the  suns  "  by  which  God  is  lead 
ing  forth  mankind  and  enchurching  His  spirit  in  the  mind  and 
heart  of  the  race.  It  was  this  alliance  with  the  Eternal  Will 
that  fascinated  his  i  magination  and  affections.  In  conversation 
with  him  I  congratulated  him  on  the  fair  promise  and  happy 
auspices  of  the  young  university.  He  replied:  "We  feel  [he 
always  used  the  plural,  thus  including  that  womanly  heart  from 
whose  fountains  his  life  had  ever  been  refreshed)  that  we  have 


Address  of  Dr.  Stebbins.  25 

good  ground  for  hope.  We  are  very  happy  ill  our  work.  We 
do  not  feel  that  we  are  making  great  sacrifices.  We  feel  that 
we  are  working  with  and  for  the  Almighty  Providence."  For 
this  I  praise  and  honor  him;  and  in  honoring  and  praising  him 
I  praise  and  honor  God,  who  so  manifests  Himself  to  the  chil 
dren  of  men.  This  is  Mr.  STANFORD'S  name  above  all  riches, 
and  this  his  fame  throughout  all  generations. 

Dear  lady,  let  me  not  intrude — but  I  should  not  be  true  to 
this  occasion,  nor  to  this  great  company,  all  whose  hearts  bear 
you  up  in  kind  sympathy  and  beseeching  prayers,  that  you 
may  be  made  strong  to  discharge  the  great  responsibilities  that 
rest  upon  you  through  him,  did  I  not  exhort  you,  in  all  love 
and  gentleness,  to  take  counsel  of  what  you  know  to  be  his  will, 
and  of  your  own  heart  enlightened  by  that  wisdom  that  cometh 
from  above.  Put  on  garments  of  praise,  and  let  a  song  of 
reverent  joy  rise  from  all  your  sorrows. 

Bearers — men  of  iron  hands  andiron  hearts!  —  gentle  down 
your  strength  a  little  as  you  bear  his  body  forth — 't  is  a  man 
ye  bear — and  lay  it  softly  in  its  last,  strong  resting  place. 

Such  honors  Ilium  to  her  hero  paid; 

And  peaceful  slept  the  mighty  Hector's  shade. 

The  services  ended  with  the  singing  of  the  hymn  ''Lead, 
Kindly  Light." 

The  casket  was  then  borne  by  the  veteran  engineers  to  the 
mausoleum  which  Mr.  STANFORD  had  erected  and  in  which  are 
three  tombs,  one  for  himself,  one  for  his  wife,  one  for  his  son 
whose  remains  were  removed  from  a  temporary  tomb  and 
placed  by  the  side  of  those  of  his  father  a  few  days  after  the 
latter's  interment.  Wide  open  stood  the  great  bronze  doors 
of  the  mausoleum  and  in  front  of  them  the  casket  was  placed. 
The  choir  sang  softly  "Abide  With  Me,"  and  Bishop  Nichols 
read  the  part  of  the  service  appointed  to  be  read  at  the  grave. 


26  Funeral  Ceremonies  at  Palo  Alto. 

The  benediction  was  said,  the  casket  was  carried  into  the 
granite  mausoleum,  and  the  bronze  doors  of  the  tomb  closed 
on  all  that  was  mortal  of  LELAND  STANFORD. 

To  the  inscription  on  the  marble  slab  on  the  tomb  the  date 
was  added : 

LELAND  STANFORD  PASSED  INTO  IMMORTALITY 
June  20,  1893. 


PROCEEDINGS  IN  THE  SENATE. 


ANNOUNCEMENT    OF     DEATH. 


MONDAY,  August  7,  1893. 

The  Senate  having  met  in  pursuance  of  the  proclamation  of 
the  President  requiring  the  convening  of  Congress,  and  neces 
sary  business  relating  to  organization  having  been  transacted, 
the  following  announcement  was  made: 

THE  DEATH  OF  SENATOR  STANFORD. 

Mr.  WHITE,  of  California.  Mr.  President,  it  becomes  my 
painful  duty  to  announce  to  the  Senate  the  death  of  my  late 
colleague,  LELAND  STANFORD.  I  shall  hereafter  request  the 
Senate  to  set  apart  a  day  for  such  remarks  with  reference  to 
his  memory  as  may  be  deemed  proper.  At  present  I  shall 
content  myself  with  moving  that,  as  a  mark  of  respect  to  the 
memory  of  the  deceased,  the  Senate  do  now  adjourn. 

The  motion  was  agreed  to;  and  (at  12  o'clock  and  25  minutes 
p.  m.)  the  Senate  adjourned  until  to-morrow,  Tuesday,  August 
8,  1893,  at  12  o'clock  m. 

27 


EULOGIES. 


SATURDAY,  September  16,  1893. 
The  Senate  met  at  12  o'clock  m. 

The  Chaplain,  Rev.  W.  H.  Milburn,  D.  D.,  offered  the  fol 
lowing  prayer: 

O  Eternal  God,  as  we  are  gathered  to  commemorate  the  life 
and  services  of  a  late  Senator  upon  this  floor  whose  noble  gift 
for  education  marks  an  era  in  the  history  of  beneficence,  we 
pray  that  the  influence  of  his  illustrious  example  upon  the  peo 
ple  of  our  whole  country  may  lead  them  to  cease  piling  great 
masses  of  idle  and  useless  stones  as  monuments  of  the  famous 
and  lamented  dead,  but  convert  them  into  houses  of  use  and 
service  for  the  benefit  of  mankind,  and  thus  for  the  honor  and 
glory  of  God. 

Comfort  and  console  the  bereaved  widow,  and  grant  her 
length  of  days  and  fullness  of  health  and  strength  to  complete 
the  organization  and  endowment  of  the  university,  that  it  may 
stand  to  the  latest  times  a  monument  to  her  husband,  herself, 
and  their  beloved  son,  thus  working  from  age  to  age  benevo 
lence,  and  education,  and  ennobling  example.  We  pray 
through  Jesus  Christ,  our  Saviour.  Amen. 

Mr.  WHITE,  of  California.  Mr.  President,  I  desire  to  offer 
resolutions  which  I  send  to  the  desk. 

The  VICE-PRESIDENT.  The  resolutions  will  be  read. 

28 


Life  and  Character  of  Lei  and  Stanford.  29 

The  Secretary  read  the  resolutions,  as  follows: 

Resolved,  That  the  Senate  has  heard  with  profound  sorrow  of  tho  death 
of  LKLAXD  STANFORD,  late  a  Senator  from  the  State  of  California. 

Resolved,  That  as  a  mark  of  respect  to  the  memory  of  the  deceased  the 
business  of  the  Senate  be  iiow  suspended,  that  his  associates  may  bo 
enabled  to  pay  proper  tribute  to  his  high  character  and  distinguished 
public  services. 

Resolved,  That  the  Secretary  of  the  Senate  communicate  these  resolu 
tions  to  the  House  of  Representatives. 

The  VICE-PRESIDENT.  The  question  is  on  agreeing  to  the 
resolutions. 

The  resolutions  were  unanimously  agreed  to. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  WHITE  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

Mr.  PRESIDENT  :  Another  member  of  this  body  has  passed 
from  among'  us,  his  term  of  office  not  accomplished.  It  is  meet 
that  we  who  have  been  his  associates  should  record  our  sor 
row  and  pay  fitting  tributes  of  respect  to  his  memory.  I  shall 
not  enter  upon  an  examination  of  the  life  and  services  of  the 
late  LELAND  STANFORD.  I  am  apprised  that  other  Senators, 
long  his  companions  here  and  elsewhere,  desire  to  signalize 
their  regard  by  a  review  of  his  career.  It  may  not  be  amiss, 
however,  for  me  to  contribute  a  brief  expression. 

Senator  STANFORD  was  thoroughly  identified  with  the  inter 
ests  of  California,  His  relations  to  that  State  and  to  her  prog 
ress  will  be  fully  detailed  by  my  able  colleague  and  others 
who  are  to  follow  me.  He  was  not  only  twice  elected  to  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States  by  the  California  legislature,  but 
he  was  also  chosen  by  the  people  to  the  high  station  of  gover 
nor.  He  was  thus  honored  at  a  time  when  it  was  necessary 
that  strong  and  wise  counsel  should  prevail,  and  the  history 
of  our  Commonwealth  discloses  that  Governor  STANFORD  was 


30  Address  of  Mr.  White,  of  California,  on  the 

not  only  loyal,  but  that  his  policy  was  such  as  to  win  the 
applause  of  all  well-disposed  ineu,  regardless  of  party  affilia 
tion.  He  had  faith  in  the  American  Union,  and  conducted 
his  administration  in  accordance  with  his  belief.  In  the 
pursuit  of  the  objects  which  he  desired  to  attain,  Senator 
STANFORD  was  diligent,  painstaking,  and  unremitting. 

His  successes  were  due,  I  think,  largely  to  his  determination 
to  win  the  object  of  his  aspiration.  His  firmness  did  not 
beget  arrogance,  and  the  possession  of  wealth  did  not  impair 
in  the  slightest  degree  his  kindly  characteristics.  The  lead 
ing  part  which  he  took  in  constructing  a  transcontinental  rail 
road  system  and  in  carrying  on  the  vast  interests  connected 
with  railroad  corporations  on  the  Pacific  coast  is  fully  known 
and  needs  no  elaboration  or  extended  presentation.  The 
crowning  effort  of  his  life — strikingly  at  variance  with  the 
conduct  of  the  average  millionaire — was  the  contribution  of 
his  means  to  the  cause  of  education.  While  many  doubted 
his  ability,  as  they  doubted  the  ability  of  any  individual,  to 
sustain  the  stupendous  burden  which  he  undertook  at  Palo 
Alto,  matters  have  so  progressed  as  to  justify  the  conclusion 
that  he  and  his  estimable  wife  did  not  overestimate  their 
capabilities.  This  bestowal  of  his  fortune  demonstrated  Mr. 
STANFORD'S  philanthropy. 

The  plan  which  he  outlined  for  the  practical  teaching  of  the 
youth  of  his  country  proved  that  he  appreciated  the  neces 
sities  of  his  fellows.  Owing  to  the  impossibility  of  overcom 
ing  the  intervening  distance,  I  was  the  only  representative  of 
the  Senate  at  his  interment.  While  participating  in  the 
impressive  ceremonies  which  there  took  place  I  soon  observed 
that,  although  there  were  no  invitations  issued,  there  were  in 
attendance  a  vast  number  of  the  older  citizens  of  California  — 
a  remarkable  representation  of  the  pioneer  element.  Many  of 
those  who  had  passed  through  the  storms  of  more  than  one 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  31 

third  of  a  century  and  who  had  participated  in  the  active  con 
tentions  of  early  California  life  stood  by  the  bier  with  moist 
ened  eye.  Some  of  them  had  differed  from  Senator  STANFORD 
in  politics  and  some  had  opposed  him  in  other  respects,  but 
till  were  emphatic  that  he  was  a  man  whose  heart  was  no  less 
reliable  than  his  brain.  If  the  expressions  of  these  most  com 
petent  witnesses  could  have  been  perpetuated,  they  would 
have  constituted  a  far  more  eloquent  tribute  to  his  memory 
than  anything  which  will  be  uttered  in  this  Chamber.  He  was 
laid  to  rest  in  that  beautiful  principality,  bewildering  in  its 
charms,  which  he  had  selected  for  his  home. 

Senator  STANFORD  was  not  without  his  trials.  The  loss  of 
the  son  whose  name  the  university  carries  was  a  blow  that  a  less 
determined  organization  would  have  failed  to  resist;  and  while 
in  this  Chamber  those  who  were  associated  with  him  utter 
words  of  regretful  sentiment,  let  it  not  be  forgotten  that  his 
companion  and  truest  friend,  the  partner  of  his  cares  and  his 
oys,  still  survives;  that  upon  her  shoulders  is  cast  the  burden 
of  carrying  out  the  great  projects  which  she  and  her  husband 
designed,  and  to  which  they  consecrated  their  later  years. 
That  she  has  the  power,  and  that  she  will  realize  their  antici 
pations,  no  one  who  is  acquainted  with  her  or  at  all  familiar 
w  ith  her  attainments  for  a  moment  doubts.  I  know  that  the 
sincere  and  undivided  condolence  of  this  Chamber  goes  out  to 
her,  and  she  can  rest  in  assured  possession  of  the  sympathy 
and  good  will  of  her  countrymen. 

Senator  STANFORD'S  death  was  not  altogether  unexpected. 
His  once  robust  constitution  yielded  to  the  pressure  of  business 
and  time.  His  transition  to  another  world  is  but  an  additional 
notice  to  us  all  suggesting  the  inevitable. 

As  the  amber  of  the  clonds 

Changes  into  silver  gray, 
So  the  light  of  every  life 

Fades  at  last  from  earth  away. 


32  Address  of  Mr.  Dolph,  of  Oregon,  on  the 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  DOLPH,  OF  OREGON. 

Mr.  PRESIDENT:  The  history  of  this  country  affords  many 
examples  of  brilliant  success  in  every  branch  of  human 
endeavor;  biographies  of  those  who  from  humble  beginnings, 
unfavorable  surroundings,  and  adverse  circumstances  have 
arisen  by  force  of  their  native  powers,  their  self-reliance,  and 
patient  industry  to  the  most  exalted  positions,  to  the  control 
of  great  industrial  establishments,  to  the  highest  usefulness 
and  distinction  in  science,  art,  and  literature.  Among  all 
these  examples,  which  show  the  possibilities  of  the  American 
youth  under  our  form  of  government  and  our  industrial  and 
educational  systems,  there  is  probably  not  a  more  conspicuous 
example  than  that  of  the  late  Senator  STANFORD,  and  there 
have  been  few  men  in  this  country  the  story  of  whose  lives 
truthfully  written  would  be  more  fascinating. 

Like  myself  he  was  born  and  reared  upon  a  farm  in  the  State 
of  New  York.  In  labor  upon  a  farm  he  laid  the  foundation  of 
bodily  vigor,  acquired  habits  of  industry,  and  learned  the  value 
of  money ;  and  in  the  district  school  he  laid  the  foundation  of 
an  education.  His  advantages  were  not  superior  to  those  of 
thousands  of  other  boys  of  his  age.  The  difference  in  their 
careers  was  not  caused  by  their  early  advantages  or  training 
or  their  opportunities,  but  by  the  difference  in  themselves. 
To  Senator  STANFORD'S  ambition,  his  moral  character,  his  good 
judgment,  his  enterprise,  energy,  and  industry  must  be  mainly 
attributed  his  success.  Like  many  ambitious  young  men,  as 
a  stepping-stone  to  something  else  he  taught  a  country  school. 
Knowing  that  the  legal  profession  had  often  proved  a  means 
of  political  preferment  and  a  road  to  wealth,  he  read  law  and 
was  admitted  to  the  bar. 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford,  33 

When  gold  was  discovered  in  California  and  the  great  rush 
to  the  New  Eldorado  began,  Mr.  STANFORD  joined  the  immigra 
tion  to  that  State  to  seek  his  fortune  there.  It  is  unnecessary 
to  trace  his  career  in  his  new  home  step  by  step.  The  qualities 
which  had  before  enabled  him  to  steadily  advance  toward  for 
tune  and  position  enabled  him  to  embrace  the  better  advan 
tages  offering  there.  They  also  attracted  the  attention  and 
commanded  the  respect  of  the  practical  and  enterprising  pio 
neers  of  the  new  State,  and  his  nomination  and  election  as 
governor  of  the  State  naturally  followed. 

Neither  Mr.  STANFORD  nor  his  associates  were  .the  first  to 
propose  a  transcontinental  railroad.  What  others  had  dreamed 
of  they  undertook  and  accomplished.  It  was  an  undertaking 
which  by  its  magnitude  appalled  more  timid  men.  The  enter 
prise  proved  to  be  a  great  success.  The  faith  and  courage  of 
its  promoters  were  rewarded  and  the  foundations  of  great 
fortunes  laid. 

The  wealth  thus  acquired  made  the  subsequent  career  of 
Mr.  STANFORD  possible,  enabled  him  to  promote  and  control 
great  enterprises  for  the  development  of  his  State,  to  liberally 
patronize  the  arts  and  sciences,  to  scatter  broadcast  the  bless 
ings  of  charity,  and  to  accomplish  the  last  crowning  act  of  his 
life,  the  founding  and  endowment  of  the  great  university  that 
bears  the  name  of  his  deceased  son.  His  knowledge  of  the 
value  and  use  of  money,  and  his  power  of  rightly  judging  men 
and  measures  were  largely  acquired  by  his  early  experiences 
and  struggles,  and  were  the  efficient  means  which  enabled 
him  to  accumulate  his  great  wealth.  It  would  be  idle  to  deny 
that  unusual  opportunities  were  opened  up  to  him~,~wMch 
enabled  him  to  reach  the  topmost  round  of  success,  but  too 
much  of  the  results  of  his  life  should  not  be  attributed  to  his 
opportunities.  Some  men  seek  out  and  create  opportunities. 
Senator  STANFORD  did  so. 
S.  Mis.  122 3 


34  Address  q/  Mr.  Dolph,  of  Oregon,  on  the 

He  carved  out  for  himself  a  place  which  any  man  might 
envy.  At  a  time  when  it  required  courage  and  enterprise  to 
cross  a  continent  through  a  wilderness  and  desert,  encounter 
ing  hardships  and  dangers,  he  left  the  civilization  of  the  older 
States  and  cast  his  lot  with  the  pioneers  of  the  Pacific  coast. 
In  that  new  country,  where  the  foundations  of  civilization  and 
of  a  great  State  were  being  laid,  his  good  judgment,  his  enter 
prise,  his  interest  in  his  fellow-men  and  in  public  affairs  soon 
made  his  presence  felt  and  enabled  him  to  greatly  aid  in  the 
establishment  of  organized  society. 

In  the  important  position  of  governor  the  same  qualities 
which  had  brought  him  to  the  front  and  made  him  a  leader  of 
men  made  his  administration  successful  and  enabled  him  to 
embrace  the  opportunities  offered  for  the  development  of  his 
State  and  the  advancement  of  his  private  fortune.  No  one  but 
a  self-reliant,  enterprising,  public-spirited  man  would  have 
ventured  upon  the  great  and  hazardous  undertaking  of  con 
structing  a  railroad  across  a  continent,  over  almost  impas 
sable  mountains,  and  through  trackless  deserts.  The  success 
of  the  great  enterprise  justified  the  expectations  of  its  pro 
moters  and  proved  the  soundness  of  their  judgment. 

But  it  is  not  the  fact  that  Mr.  STANFORD  was  governor  of 
California  during  the  war  of  the  rebellion  and  saved  his  State 
to  the  Union,  or  that  he  was  one  of  the  promoters  of  the  great 
corporation  which  built  the  pioneer  railroad  across  the  conti 
nent  and  bound  together  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  with  bands 
of  steel,  or  that  the  people  of  California  twice  honored  him 
with  an  election  to  the  United  States  Senate,  that  makes  his 
name  to-day  a  household  word  and  causes  his  praise  to  be  on 
every  tongue,  and  that  will  perpetuate  his  memory  through 
coining  years.  It  is  the  fact  that  he  came  to  fully  recognize 
the  claims  of  humanity  upon  those  endowed  with  great  wealth 
and  to  regard  his  wealth  as  a  trust,  to  be  managed  and  used 


Life  and  Character  of  Le laud  Stanford.  35 

for  the  glory  of  God  and  the  good  of  his  fellow-inen.     His  char 
acter  was  like  that  described  by  Shakespeare  when  he  wrote: 

For  his  bounty 

There  was  110  winter  in't;  an  autumn  'twas 
That  grew  the  more  by  reaping. 

The  calls  upon  him  for  aid  to  religious,  educational,  and 
charitable  institutions  and  to  individuals  were  so  numerous 
and  constant  that  it  is  not  improbable  that  sometimes  his 
liberality  was  imposed  upon  and  his  benevolence  misapplied, 
but  in  the  main  his  charities  were  bestowed  worthily  and 
with  good  judgment. 

Of  his  career  in  this  body  I  need  not  speak  at  length.  He 
was  never  intrusive  or  self-asserting.  He  was  willing  to  leave 
the  work  of  the  Senate  mainly  to  other  and  younger  hands. 
Although  largely  occupied  with  other  cares  and  duties,  and 
especially  with  the  plan  for  his  great  university,  and  afflicted 
with  bodily  infirmities,  the  interests  of  his  State  in  Congress 
were  never  neglected.  His  counsel  was  always  valuable,  and 
his  kindness  of  heart,  his  benevolence,  and  his  love  for 
humanity,  which  was  manifested  in  all  he  said  and  did,  made 
his  presence  among  us  a  blessing.  Coming  to  the  Senate  at 
an  advanced  age,  without  previous  experience  in  legislative 
bodies,  with  other  great  cares  and  responsibilities,  and  with 
enfeebled  health,  he  did  not  assert  himself  or  take  that  com 
manding  position  in  the  Senate  which  he  would  naturally 
have  done  if  he  had  entered  that  body  at  an  earlier  period  in 
his  life  and  when  in  the  full  vigor  of  manhood. 

Confessedly,  the  idea  of  founding  and  endowing  a  great 
university  grew  out  of  his  great  bereavement  in  the  loss  of 
his  only  son.  The  stricken  parents  appear  to  have  transferred 
the  solicitude,  time,  and  labor  which  had  before  been  given  to 
the  promising  object  of  their  affections  to  humanity. 

The  declaration  of  Senator  and  Mrs.  STANFORD,  made  while 


36  Address  of  Mr,  Dolph,  of  Oregon,  on  the 

their  hearts  were  still  freshly  bleeding  on  account  of  their 
great  affliction,  that  "the  children  of  California  shall  be  our 
children,"  was  almost  sublime. 

How  grandly  was  this  declaration  made  good.  How  better 
could  the  children  of  California — yea,  the  children  of  the 
entire  Union,  of  this  generation  and  generations  to  come  — 
have  been  made  the  beneficiaries  of  his  great  wealth  than  by 
the  founding  and  munificent  endowment  of  a  great  university, 
at  which  the  children  of  the  poor  as  well  as  those  of  the  rich 
might  have  an  opportunity  to  secure  such  an  education  as 
is  usually  only  within  the  reach  of  the  wealthy,  a  university 
which  is  destined  to  be  enduring  and  to  exert  an  incalculable 
influence  for  good  upon  the  future  of  this  country. 

Senator  STANFORD  devoted  his  time  and  his  strength  to  the 
last  to  the  great  scheme  of  his  life.  With  failing  strength, 
with  increasing  infirmities,  with  the  evident  consciousness 
that  the  closing  scene  of  earth  for  him  could  not  be  far  distant, 
with  serenity,  with  patient,  painstaking  industry,  the  whole 
plan  and  all  the  details  of  the  great  university  were  constantly 
in  his  mind  and  received  his  personal  attention.  His  great 
desire  was  to  leave  the  great  undertaking  in  as  advanced  a 
condition  as  possible. 

To  the  casual  observer  it  would  appear  as  if  Senator  STAN 
FORD'S  early  dreams  had  become  realities,  his  hopes  had 
reached  fruition,  and  his  ambitions  had  been  gratified,  and  yet 
all  of  us  know  how  little  he  prized  worldly  possessions,  worldly 
honors,  and  worldly  successes.  How,  when  the  idol  of  life,  his 
promising  and  beautiful  boy,  was  taken  from  him  and  his 
fondest  earthly  hopes  perished,  all  his  possessions  became  to 
him  like  apples  of  Sodom. 

The  career  of  our  late  associate  is  not  only  an  example  worthy 
of  emulation  by  American  youth,  but  worthy  to  be  followed  by 
those  whom  fortune  has  blessed  with  wealth. 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  37 

Men  with  large  wealth  have  comparatively  large  duties. 
Happy  is  the  man  blessed  with  great  wealth  who  recognizes  his 
responsibility  to  God  and  his  moral  obligations  to  his  fellow- 
men  and  who  embraces  the  opportnnites  presenting  themselves 
to  discharge  those  obligations.  In  the  great  effort  to  alleviate 
human  suffering,  to  educate  and  elevate  the  race,  to  advance 
moral  reforms,  to  make  the  masses  comfortable,  intelligent, 
virtuous,  and  independent,  the  wealthy  are  rightly  expected  to 
lead.  It  is  a  blessed  as  well  as  solemn  thing  to  possess  more 
power  for  good  than  other  men,  and  fortunate  is  the  man  pos 
sessing  an  abundance  of  that  which  is  calculated  to  minister 
to  the  weal  of  the  race  who  welcomes  and  embraces  opportu 
nities  to  bless  mankind. 

The  duty  of  benevolence,  however,  is  not  confined  to  the 
rich.  The  less  favored  by  fortune  have  responsibilities  and 
duties  in  proportion  to  their  means.  The  poor  may  dispense 
charity  as  well  as  the  rich.  The  giving  of  silver  and  gold  alone 
does  not  constitute  charity.  The  kind  interest,  the  words  of 
sympathy  and  encouragement  which  always  accompanied  Sen 
ator  STANFORD'S  gifts  were  more  grateful  than  the  gold  itself. 
All  can  contribute  something  to  mak3  the  world  better  and 
mankind  happier. 

A  nameless  man,  among  a  crowd  that  thronged  the  daily  mart, 
Let  fall  a  word  of  hope  and  love,  unstudied  from  the  heart ; 
A  whisper  on  the  tumult  thrown,  a  transitory  breath, 
It  raised  a  brother  from  the  dust,  it  saved  a  soul  from  death. 

With  wealth  which  could  command- everything  which  human 
heart  could  desire,  and  which  enabled  him  to  scatter  blessings 
as  flowers  scatter  fragrance;  full  of  honors,  representing  the 
great  State  of  California  for  a  second  term  in  the  United  States 
Senate;  engaged  in  carrying  out  the  crowning  act  of  his  life  for 
the  benefit  of  his  fellow-men,  our  brother  was  transported, 
probably  in  an  instant,  from  the  scenes  of  his  earthly  poises- 


38  Address  of  Mr.  Dolph,  of  Oregon,  on  the 

sions  and  activities  to  the  spirit  world.  Happy  those  who,  like 
him  we  mourn,  are  content  to  tread  the  path  of  duty  and  do 
faithfully  and  well  the  work  their  hands  find  to  do  in  this 
world,  and,  trusting  to  a  merciful  Creator  for  the  next,  wait 
the  end  with  serene  hope  and  confidence. 

The  realm  of  death  seems  an  enemy's  country  to  most  men,  on  whose 
shores  they  are  loathly  driven  by  stress  of  weather;  to  the  wise  man  it  is 
the  desired  port  where  he  moors  his  bark  gladly,  as  in  some  quiet  haven 
of  the  Fortunate  Isles;  it  is  the  golden  west  into  which  the  sun  sinks,  and, 
sinking,  casts  back  a  glory  upon  the  leaden  cloud-track  which  had  darkly 
besieged  his  day. 

By  the  death  of  our  brother  we  are  again  reminded  of  the 
unalterable  decree  which  dooms  all  flesh  to  the  grave.  We  are 
compelled  to  pause  amid  the  rush  of  worldly  pursuits  and  the 
clash  of  worldly  controversies  to  consider  the  end  of  man.  We 
behold  everywhere  about  us  the  succession  of  birth,  life,  and 
death.  Nature  tells  of  no  escape  from  the  inevitable  law  of 
our  being,  and  affords  no  ground  for  hope  for  the  future. 

Generations  of  men  appear  and  vanish  as  the  grass,  and  the  countless 
multitudes  that  throng  the  world  to-day  will  to-morrow  disappear  as  the 
footsteps  on  the  shore. 

If  it  were  not  for  the  hope  that  is  inspired  by  revelation  of 
a  resurrection  and  future  life,  how  desolate  and  gloomy  would 
be  the  grave,  how  empty  and  fruitless  would  human  life 
appear. 

Our  departed  brother  was  a  Christian  man.  His  faith  was 
simple  and  unfaltering  and  was  the  mainspring  of  his  philan 
thropy.  Eeligion  was  a  common  and  favorite  theme  with  him. 
He  regarded  God  as  a  merciful  father  and  mankind  as  a  great 
brotherhood.  His  gifts  to  aid  Christian  institutions  and  Chris 
tian  efforts  were  numerous  and  princely.  He  died  in  a  firm 
belief  that  he  should  awaken  in  the  spirit  land  to  behold  his 
God' and  embrace  his  loved  ones  gone  before.  Happy  indeed 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  39 

is  the  possessor  of  such  faith — a  faith  which  enables  him  to 
say  with  the  poet : 

There  is  no  death !     But  angel  forms 
Walk  o'er  the  earth  with  silent  tread; 
They  bear  our  best-loved  things  away, 
And  then  we  call  them  "dead." 

Our  brother  has  gone  from  us  forever.  He  will  have  no  further 
part  in  all  that  is  done  under  the  sun.  He  sleeps  the  sleep  that 
knows  no  waking,  near  the  great  institution  he  so  liberally 
endowed.  The  great  scheme  that  absorbed  his  energies  in 
later  years  will  be  carried  on  by  others. 

Thousands  of  young  men  in  coming  years,  aided  by  his  wise 
benevolence,  will  there  equip  themselves  for  life's  duties,  and 
his  benevolence,  through  them,  will  be  transmitted  to  later 
generations.  The  students  in  after  years  enjoying  the  fruits  of 
his  liberality  will  stand  with  reverence  at  his  tomb  and  repeat 
his  praises.  The  fruitful  vineyards  and  orchards  at  Palo  Alto 
will  bud,  blossom,  and  yield  their  fruitage ;  the  flowers  will 
come  in  the  springtime  to  scatter  their  fragrance;  generations 
will  come  and  go;  time  will  change  the  very  face  of  nature; 
but  nothing  will  disturb  his  repose.  He  has  solved  the  great 
mystery  of  life  and  death. 

Though  dead,  his  works  live  after  him,  and  will  live  and 
exert  their  influence  for  good  to  the  latest  generations. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  PEFFER,  OF  KANSAS. 

Mr.  PRESIDENT:  My  earliest  information  concerning  the 
man  LELAND  STANFORD  came  through  the  public  press  in  the 
way  of  news  reporting  the  operation  of  great  business  enter 
prises  in  which  he  was  engaged  in  regions  bordering  on  the 
Pacific  Ocean. 


40  Address  of  Mr.  Peffer,  of  Kansas,  on  the 

It  was  at  a  time  when  the  transportation  system  of  the 
country  was  developing  with  wonderful  progress  and  other 
strong  minds  in  other  sections  were  building  and  managing 
other  great  railway  lines.  These  skillful  carriers  in  a  few 
years  constructed  the  most  stupendous  traffic  connections  ever 
known  among  men.  Mr.  STANFORD  was  recognized  as  the 
peer  of  any  among  these  master  builders.  His  standing  was 
attested  not  only  by  his  work  as  a  carrier,  but  as  well  by  his 
growth  in  personal  fortune  and  by  his  prudent  management 
of  a  large  private  business. 

In  that  view  of  him  I  regarded  him  simply  as  one  among 
many  strong  men  seeking  wealth  and  the  power  and  influence 
which  comes  with  success. 

If  there  were  no  object  other  or  better  than  the  gratifica 
tion  of  avarice,  the  accumulation  of  riches  is  a  most  ignoble 
pursuit,  and  we  can  not  tell  what  motives  impel  men  to  action 
until  we  see  what  disposition  they  make  of  their  opportuni 
ties.  It  was  then  too  soon  to  measure  the  full  stature  of  this 
man. 

Early  in  the  year  1890 1  saw  him  in  another  and  a  wider  field, 
acting  on  a  higher  plane,  where  there  was  more  room  for  the 
play  of  his  intellectual  powers.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
American  Senate,  charged  with  the  responsibilities  of  legis 
lation  for  a  mighty  people.  Having  begun  in  private  life 
devising  means  for  the  distribution  of  movable  property  — 
the  products  of  labor — among  the  people  in  different  places, 
nothing  was  more  natural  or  logical  than  that  when  he 
entered  public  life  he  should  begin  a  study  of  means  for  the 
diffusion  of  the  values  of  labor's  work.  As  in  his  private 
capacity  he  had  builded  great  traffic  lines  to  carry  property 
long  distances,  so  when  he  entered  the  field  of  politics  he  saw 
the  need  of  improved  and  enlarged  facilities  for  the  easy  and 
quick  exchanges  of  the  value  of  property  through  a  more 
general  and  less  expensive  means  of  passing  from  hand  what 
the  people  agree  in  their  laws  shall  represent  values. 


Life  and  Character  of  Lei  and  Stanford.  41 

It  was  iu  tliis  grand  work  that  I  saw  him  the  second  time  — 
not  by  physical  sight,  but  through  the  eyes  of  the  press.  He 
introduced  a  bill  in  the  Senate  to  increase  the  circulating 
medium  and  to  afford  money  to  borrowers  at  low  rates  of 
interest.  From  his  own  experience  and  from  his  observations 
among  men,  he  saw  that  through  the  destroying  power  of  usury 
the  profits  of  labor  were  being  rapidly  absorbed  by  compara 
tively  a  few  persons,  and  he  saw  also  that  this  process  must 
be  arrested  if  we  would  preserve  our  liberties  and  perpetuate 
the  Eepublic.  As  a  plain  business  proposition  he  saw  that 
there  was  but  one  reasonable  way  to  effect  that  result,  and  he 
presented  his  plan  to  the  country  in  a  short  speech  in  this 
Chamber  advocating  his  land-loan  bill. 

My  personal  acquaintance  with  him  began  after  I  became  a 
member  of  this  body,  and  it  soon  ripened  into  a  friendship 
which  1  am  pleased  to  state  in  this  presence  waxed  warmer 
and  stronger  as  it  grew  older. 

As  the  years  of  his  life  passed  behind  him  and  as  the  shad 
ows  of  evening  began  to  gather  about  him  his  sympathy  with 
the  poor  and  toiling  masses  of  his  fellow-men  grew  stronger 
and  stronger,  until  it  became  a  ruling  passion,  and  here  is 
where  he  rose  to  the  full  stature  of  a  noble  man.  Having 
amassed  a  vast  fortune,  his  real  estate  embracing  over  80,000 
acres  of  choice  California  lands,  being  in  receipt  of  a  large 
annual  income,  he  was  moved  to  devise  means  whereby  others 
beside  himself,  and  those  who  most  need  assistance,  should 
share  with  him  his  good  fortune. 

And,  what  is  more  and  better,  his  plan  involved  the  opera 
tion  of  good  influences  moving  out  through  the  education  of 
young  men  and  women  whose  early  training,  traditions,  and 
troubles  would  probably  always  keep  them  close  to  the  common 
people.  The  Stanford  University  will  send  out  among  the 
people  evangels  of  good  will,  sowing  that  others  may  reap. 


42  Address  of  Mr.  Mitchell,  of  Oregon,  on  the 

And  here,  Mr.  President,  is  where  we  see  the  best,  the  noblest, 
the  grandest  work  of  LELAND  STANFORD.  He  went  down  to 
the  grave  honored  by  his  fellow-citizens  because  in  private  life 
and  in  public  station  he  had  been  capable,  faithful,  and  true. 
But  the  brightest  gems  his  memory  wears  are  the  prayers  and 
tears  of  the  poor  whose  lives  his  kindness  made  happier  and 
brighter. 

And  to  the  woman  who  knew  him  best  and  loved  him  most, 
let  me  say  that  there  is  no  higher  plane  for  her  sex,  110  more 
fruitful  ambition,  no  riper  field  for  action  than  to  be  the  life 
partner  and  the  coworker  of  a  man  that  is  doing  good  to  his 
fellow-men.  Mrs.  Stanford,  in  the  darkness  of  her  sorrow, 
enjoys  the  sympathy  of  millions  who  would  gladly  bear  her 
burdens.  May  the  evening  of  her  life  be  brightened  by  rays 
from  the  other  shore,  where  the  morning  of  a  new  day  awaits 
her  coming. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  MITCHELL,  OF  OREGON. 

Mr.  PRESIDENT:  It  is  not  my  purpose  to  attempt  any 
extended  eulogium  over  the  late  distinguished  Senator.  To  do 
that  would  require  a  carefully  prepared  statement  of  his  life 
from  birth  to  death,  from  humble  poverty  to  that  of  vast 
wealth,  from  jovial  schoolboy  days  to  unusTial  triumphs  as  a 
financier,  statesman,  philanthropist.  All  this  belongs  properly 
to  the  historian,  not  to  us  here  or  now. 

In  justice,  therefore,  to  the  name  and  memory  of  the  distin 
guished  dead,  I  must  not  attempt  at  this  time  to  do  more  than 
add  a  word  of  tribute  to  that  which  has  been  already  so  well 
said  to  the  memory  of  our  late  distinguished  colleague  and 
friend;  one  highly  esteemed  and  loved  by  all,  and  whose  name 
and  the  remembrance  of  whose  genial,  courteous  nature  and 
kindly  acts,  whose  record  as  a  statesman  and  philanthropist, 


Life  and  Character  of  Lei  and  Stanford,  43 

will  live  as  a  part  of  the  history  of  America,  so  long  as  that 
history  shall  endure  among  the  annals  of  time. 

The  history  of  the  life  of  LELAND  STANFORD,  late  a  Senator 
from  the  State  of  California,  is  pregnant  with  lessons  of 
instruction,  filled  with  food  for  meditation.  It  presents  a 
conspicuous  exemplification  of  that  phenomenal  success  in 
different  spheres  of  life  —  social,  business,  political  —  the 
attainment  of  which  is  possible  by  every  American  youth 
possessed  of  intelligence,  industry,  and  integrity. 

LELAND  STANFORD,  we  are  told,  was  a  farmer's  son.  He 
was  not  a  product  of  the  city.  He  was  reared  on  a  farm.  Nor 
did  he,  although  of  excellent  lineage,  ever  claim  any  part  of 
his  success  in  life  as  due  to  ancestral  distinction. 

In  his  youth  and  early  manhood  he  breathed  the  pure  air  of 
country  life.  His  early  habits  were  formed  under  the  benign 
influence,  and  his  character  molded  under  the  beneficent  direc 
tion,  of  poor  but  intelligent  parents,  whose  lives  in  the  country 
regions  of  New  York  spoke  but  one  language,  that  of  humble 
deportment,  genuine  integrity,  a  spirit  of  energy  and  philan 
thropic  development,  and  absolute  fidelity  to  every  public  and 
private  trust. 

It  is  from  beginnings  such  as  these  that  have  sprung  the 
master  minds  which  have  left  their  impress  on  the  pages  of 
our  nation's  history,  as  statesmen,  military  heroes,  financiers, 
scientists,  philanthropists,  and  as  great  leaders  in  every  depart 
ment  of  life.  To  such  an  ancestry,  to  such  an  education  in 
early  life,  could  LELAND  STANFORD  look  back  with  an  enthu 
siasm  of  pardonable  pride,  but  never  more  so  in  all  the  mag 
nificent  successes  which  attended  him  in  his  eminently  suc 
cessful  life,  in  what  may  properly  be  termed  his  triumphant 
career  as  a  financier  and  statesman,  than  when  he  had  reached 
the  acme  of  that  career.  Then,  doubtless,  more  than  ever 
before  his  mind  reverted  with  conscious  pride  to  his  humble 


44  Address  of  Mr.  Mitchell,  of  Oregon,  on  the 

home,  his  primitive  country  life,  where,  amid  the  perfumes  of 
the  wild  flowers  and  the  songs  of  the  babbling  brooks  of  his 
country  home  in  the  green  fields  of  the  beautiful  Mohawk,  he 
spent  his  boyhood  days. 

To  no  titled  ancestry,  to  no  long  line  of  hereditary  heroes, 
was  our  late  distinguished  colleague  compelled  to  trace  his  lin 
eage  or  attribute  the  credit  of  his  remarkable  successes.  He 
was  an  American.  To  this  alone,  coupled  with  unusual  intel 
lectual  attainments,  his  integrity,  his  industry,  his  organ 
izing  power,  is  he  indebted  to  the  fame  that  is  his,  and  that 
will  be  his,  perpetuated  through  his  magnificent  benefactions, 
while  the  State  and  the  country  in  which  he  lived  and  of 
which  he  was  a  conspicuous  part  continue  to  endure. 

It  is  not  that  LELAND  STANFORD  was  possessed  of  great 
wealth  that  he  was  commended  while  living  to  the  kindly  consid 
eration  of  his  fellow-men,  nor  for  this  reason  is  it  that  his  name 
and  memory  are  now  embalmed  in  the  affections  of  his  coun 
trymen.  Great  wealth  concentrated  in  one  individual  is  a 
mighty  power,  either  for  good  or  evil.  In  some  men,  as  with 
Senator  STANFORD,  it  develops  all  those  grand  elements  of 
human  nature  the  influence  of  which  brought  into  active 
operation  diffuses  benefactions  in  all  directions,  while  in 
others  it  transforms  its  possessor  into  a  miser,  whom  one  lex 
icographer  characterizes  as  "  one  who  is  wretched  through 
covetousness;  one  who  lives  miserably  through  fear  of  poverty 
and  hoards  beyond  a  prudent  economy ;  a  person  excessively 
penurious;"  and  another,  as  "a  man  who  enslaves  himself  to 
his  money." 

It  is  due  to  the  memory  of  the  distinguished  dead  to  state 
that  as  he  increased  in  wealth  and  advanced  in  years  his  mind 
seemed  constantly  occupied  in  contriving  how  he  could,  either 
through  the  instrumentality  of  the  great  means  he  possessed 
or  in  his  position  as  Senator,  benefit  the  weak,  the  poor,  the 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  45 

lowly.  He  did  not  aspire  to  perpetuate  his  name  by  erecting 
useless  mausoleums  of  brick,  or  stone,  or  marble  commem 
orative  of  some  mere  se'itimeut,  or  link  it  with  those  of  the 
rich,  the  great,  the  powerful.  On  the  contrary,  the  rising 
generation,  the  youth  of  the  laud,  the  great  masses  of  the 
<' plain  people,"  who  constitute  the  toiling  millions  of  our 
country,  had  his  first  and  best  thought,  and  to  the  promotion 
and  preservation  of  their  best  interests  he  dedicated  his  intel 
lectual  powers,  as  also  millions  of  his  wealth. 

Whatever  may  be  thought  by  some  of  the  practical  utility 
of  his  financial  scheme,  which  he  so  earnestly  and  ably  advo 
cated  and  which  was  approved  by  millions  of  his  countrymen, 
for  the  loaning  of  money  by  the  United  States  direct  to  the 
people  at  a  low  rate  of  interest,  taking  mortgages  on  farms  as 
security,  all  will  now  agree  it  indicated  in  unmistakable  terms 
a  philanthropic  spirit,  an  earnest  desire  to  aid,  through  the 
instrumentality  of  what  he  regarded  as  constitutional  and 
proper  governmental  influence,  not  the  great  moneyed  institu 
tions  of  the  country,  not  the  vast  corporations  of  the  laud, 
with  several  of  which  he  was  prominently  identified  in  a  busi 
ness  way,  but  rather  the  great  masses  of  producers,  the  farmers, 
the  planters,  and  the  wage- workers  of  the  country.  In  his 
capacity  as  Senator,  legislation  having  for  its  purpose  the 
minimizing  of  illiteracy,  the  promotion  of  the  education  of  the 
rising  generation,  the  advancement  of  our  people  to  a  higher 
degree  of  intelligence,  received  his  constant,  earnest,  and 
efficient  support.  He  was  an  ardent  advocate  of  national  aid 
in  the  establishment  and  support  of  common  schools.  He 
believed  with  Lord  Kames,  who,  in  his  "Elements  of  Criti 
cisms,"  said : 

In  the  first  seven  years  of  our  life  we  acquire  a  greater  number  of  ideas 
than  ever  after. 


46  Address  of  Mr.  Mitchell,  of  Oregon,  on  the 

And  with  another  celebrated  philosopher,  who  declared 
that— 

The  education  a  child  receives  in  the  first  five  years  of  its  life  is  of  more 
importance  than  all  after  education  and  has  more  influence  in  forming  the 
child's  character. 

He  was,  moreover,  the  promoter  and  able  advocate  of  legis 
lation  having  for  its  purpose  the  organization  of  cooperative 
associations,  the  main  purpose  of  which  was  to  enable  those 
who  had  but  little  capital  and  could  control  but  little  to  reap, 
through  such  cooperative  organizations,  the  legitimate  benefits 
and  honest  fruits  which  naturally  flow  from  aggregated  capital 
properly  employed. 

Although  prominently  identified  with  several  corporations 
carrying  millions  of  capital  and  the  interests  of  which  were 
liable  at  times  to  be  materially  advanced  by  pending  national 
legislation,  the  truth  of  history  requires  it  to  be  said  that  in 
the  legislative  career  of  Senator  STANFORD  in  the  Senate  of 
the  United  States  never  once  was  his  voice  raised  in  advocacy 
of  any  such  legislation,  and  to  no  vote  of  his  can  be  attributed 
any  aid  to  legislation  of  that  character. 

Senator  STANFORD  was  in  disposition  and  character  excep 
tionally  modest,  reserved,  retiring.  His  great  wealth,  his 
prominence  in  connection  with  those  great  enterprises  of 
physical  development,  the  transcontinental  railroads,  the  mag 
nitude  and  national  effect  of  which  commanded  the  admiration 
of  the  world,  instead  of  clothing  him  with  a  haughty  and  aris 
tocratic  air,  seemed  to  stimulate  within  him  those  elements  of 
true  manhood  which,  under  all  conditions  and  at  all  times, 
recognize  real  personal  integrity  and  worth  as  the  touchstone 
of  true  merit,  irrespective  of  all  considerations  of  wealth  on 
the  one  hand  or  poverty  on  the  other. 

In  private  conversation  Senator  STANFORD  was  most  inter 
esting,  attractive,  and  instructive.  Thoroughly  versed  in 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  47 

historic  literature,  with  a  philosophic  turn  of  mind,  a  heart 
whose  kindly  influence  ever  found  expression  in  every  word 
and  look  and  act,  one  never  returned  from  an  evening  spent 
in  the  company  of  that  exceptionally  good  man,  as  I  have  for 
many  years  believed  him  to  be,  without  a  feeling  that  it  was 
an  evening  spent  in  such  manner  that  one  was  wiser  and  bet 
ter  for  it. 

The  people  of  the  great  West — of  that  vast  region  lying 
between  the  Eocky  Mountains  and  the  waters  of  the  Pacific, 
with  all  its  present  elements  of  greatness  and  power,  and 
unspeakable  possibilities  as  to  the  future — have  much  reason 
to  sincerely  deplore,  as  they  do  sincerely  mourn,  the  death  of 
LELAND  STANFORD.  To  him  and  his  business  associates  do  we 
feel  indebted  in  a  large  degree  for  that  physical  development 
of  our  country  which  has  brought  us  into  close  social  and  busi 
ness  connection  with  the  civilization  of  the  East,  and  made  us 
more  nearly  and  directly  a  constituent  part  of  the  grand  civil 
ization  of  the  American  Republic,  which  to-day  commands  the 
respect  and  admiration  of  mankind.  Through  the  forceful 
enterprise  of  LELAND  STANFORD  and  his  associates  the  great 
mineral  deposits  of  those  distant  regions,  which  have  added 
thousands  of  millions  of  gold  and  silver  to  the  national  wealth, 
to  say  nothing  of  other  great  industries  of  that  magnificent 
region,  have  been  developed. 

The  grand  old  poet  Horace,  in  his  vanity,  proclaimed  his 
own  greatness  and  the  perpetuation  of  his  name  by  his  works 
when  he  said : 

I've  reared  a  monument,  my  own,  more  durable  than  brass, 
Yea,  kingly  pyramids  of  stone  in  height  it  doth  surpass. 
Rains  shall  not  fall  nor  storms  descend  to  sap  its  settled  base, 
Nor  countless  ages  rolling  past,  its  symmetry  deface. 

But,  Mr.  President,  what  are  the  benefactions  which  poster 
ity  has  reaped  from  the  monument  reared  by  Horace  centuries 


48  Address  of  Mr.  Mitchell,  of  Oregon,  on  the 

ago,  and  to  which  he  so  beautifully  attracted  the  attention  of 
mankind,  and  the  glories  of  which  have  been  perpetuated  by 
his  own  eulogy,  to  those  conferred  on  posterity  by  the  munifi 
cence  of  our  distinguished  dead  at  Palo  Alto  1  There,  by  a  gift 
unequaled  in  its  munificence  by  that  of  any  philanthropist 
that  ever  lived  in  America  or  in  the  world,  have  been  laid  the 
foundations  and  erected  the  stately  columns,  and  endowed  with 
all  the  professorships  and  paraphernalia  properly  pertaining  to 
it,  an  institution  of  learning,  a  grand  university,  on  a  scale  far 
excelling  any  other,  that  will  forever  hand  down  to  the  remotest 
generations  not  only  the  names  of  LELAND  STANFORD  and  his 
beloved,  talented,  and  philanthropic  wife,  but  also  that  of  his 
only  and  idolized  son,  Leland  Stanford,  jr.,  whose  name  the 
great  university  bears. 

What,  Mr.  President,  can  I  say  in  addition  to  what  has 
already  been  said  to  indicate  my  estimate  of  the  character  of 
our  late  distinguished  colleague?  He  was  a  man  of  kind  and 
generous  heart.  He  was  far  above  the  average  in  those  grand 
qualities  which  go  to  make  up  a  man  of  affairs.  He  was  conspic 
uous  as  a  leader  and  organizer  of  men  in  the  mighty  march  of 
material  development  of  the  far  West  and  in  the  onward 
progress  of  the  civilization  of  the  age  in  which  we  live.  He 
asserted  himself  as  a  master  mind  in  the  legislation  of  his 
time — both  State  and  national.  As  governor  of  his  State 
during  the  exciting  and  troublous  period  of  the  war,  as  Sen 
ator  in  the  United  States  Senate  from  the  great  State  of 
California,  as  financier  and  philanthropist,  his  record  is  meri 
torious  in  the  highest  degree,  wholly  free  from  blot  or  blemish, 
and  absolutely  unassailable  in  any  respect  whatever.  His 
name  is  prominently  coupled  and  will  forever  remain  with 
the  construction  of  the  first  transcontinental  railroad  of  the 
country,  which  connected  the  civilization  of  the  East  with  that 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  49 

of   the  West.     Indeed,  he  was    one  of    the    promoters   and 
builders  of  that  great  enterprise. 

And,  Mr.  President,  while  we  here  to-day  commemorate  the 
virtues  of  and  pay  tribute  to  the  memory  of  our  late  distin 
guished  colleague,  our  personal  friend,  let  us  not  forget  the 
widow  in  her  desolation.  Far  away  on  the  shores  of  the  Pacific, 
surrounded,  it  is  true,  by  all  the  comforts  and  luxuries  which 
wealth  and  social  distinction  can  bring,  sits  to-day  in  her 
widow's  weeds,  in  gloomy  solitude,  overwhelmed  with  a  sorrow 
that  can  not  be  measured  by  either  tongue  or  pen,  the  once 
happy  bride  of  forty-three  years  ago,  now  the  disconsolate 
widow  of  three  months  ago. 

First  came  the  remorseless  reaper,  and  beneath  the  sunny 
skies  of  Italy,  far  away  from  home,  snatched  from  loving 
parents  the  sole  child,  the  idolized  son  on  whom  so  many  high 
hopes,  the  outgrowth  of  parental  solicitude,  were  centered,  and, 
without  request  or  consent,  bore  him  away  to  "that  undiscov 
ered  country  from  whose  bourne  no  traveler  returns;"  and 
then,  scarce  before  the  darkening  shadows  of  this  inexpressible 
grief  had  lifted  their  gloom  from  the  home  life  of  our  distin 
guished  friend  and  his  faithful  companion,  the  remorseless 
enemy  with  stealthy  tread  again  returns  with  seeming  determi 
nation  to  assert  in  unmistakable  terms  within  that  household 
the  primacy  and  power  of  that  supreme  intelligence  which 
controls  the  affairs  and  determines  the  destinies  of  men,  and 
in  the  silent  hours  of  night,  with  no  word  of  warning,  closes 
forever  the  eyes  of  our  late  colleague,  the  loving  husband  of  a 
wife  already  overwhelmed  with  sorrow.  To  that  widow  to-day 
in  her  deep  sorrow  goes  out  the  sympathy  of  the  Senate  of  the 
United  States.  We  want  her  to  understand,  to  fully  realize, 
we  do  not  fail  to  comprehend  the  depths  of  her  grief,  and  that 
our  sympathy  for  her  in  her  great  affliction  is  heartfelt  and 
sincere. 

S.  Mis  122 4 


50  Address  of  Mr.  Daniel,  of  Virginia,  on  the 

We  wish  her  to  know  that  we,  with  her,  believe  that  beyond 
this  vale  of  tears,  when  the  sorrows  and  griefs  of  parting  in 
this  life  shall  forever  fade  away,  that  in  the  eternal  and  perfect 
home  of  the  Elysian  fields,  in  that  "  undiscovered  country " 
upon  whose  hidden  shores  the  eyes  of  mortal  man  have  never 
yet  rested,  there  will  in  the  dawning  future  be  a  reunion  of 
kindred  spirits,  a  joyful,  gladsome  meeting  of  father,  mother, 
husband,  wife,  child,  and  that  such  reunion,  in  the  grand  econ 
omy  of  the  Great  Architect  of  the  Universe,  will  be  but  the 
beginning  of  a  life  of  eternal  joy. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR,  DANIEL,  OF  VIRGINIA. 

Mr.  PRESIDENT  :  The  late  Senator  LELAND  STANFORD,  of 
California,  was  a  great  man,  and  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
characters  that  this  country  has  produced.  His  career  was 
on  a  gigantic  scale,  like  the  natural  features  of  our  imperial 
domain,  and  like  the  mighty  facts  of  our  marvelous  history. 

His  story  from  the  time  he  went  to  the  West,  an  adventurous 
young  man  seeking  his  fortune,  to  the  time  when  he  became  a 
great  railroad  builder,  governor,  Senator,  and  a  very  Croesus 
in  possessions,  reads  like  an  Arabian  tale  "  in  the  golden  prime 
of  good  Haroun  Al  Raschid." 

There  was  nothing  small  about  him.  Of  massive  frame, 
massive  head,  and  massive  mind,  lie  was  also  a  man  of  great 
heart.  And  great  and  beneficent  works  remain  as  his  enduring 
monuments.  Like  George  Peabody  and  W.  W.  Corcoran,  he 
was  a  philanthropist.  To  give  was  to  him  a  joy — to  give 
quickly,  to  give  often,  and  to  give  much.  "  The  Lord,"  we  are 
told,  "loveth  a  cheerful  giver,"  and  such  was  LELAND  STAN 
FORD  of  California. 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  51 

Senator  STANFORD  deserves  the  name  of  patriot.  He  was 
the  governor  of  California  during  the  most  strained  and  excited 
period  of  its  history  —  the  civil  war.  In  his  conduct  of  that 
office  he  exhibited  his  breadth  of  mind  and  demonstrated  that 
breadth  of  mind  can  never  be  separated  from  breadth  of  heart. 
Instead  of  harshness  and  severity,  he  applied  to  the  disturbed 
conditions  of  public  sentiment,  arising  from  conflicting  views, 
the  ameliorating  influences  of  moderation,  kindness,  and 
friendly  counsel.  He  brought  men  together  who  were  indulg 
ing  in  vehement  and  inflammatory  utterances.  He  pointed 
out  to  them  that  they  could  accomplish  no  good  by  a  queru 
lous  niid  incendiary  course;  that  if  they  became  bitter  and 
venomous  toward  each  other  they  would  be  no  nearer  the 
accomplishment  of  their  ends,  but  would  poison  the  society  of 
the  State  for  many  years  to  come.  And  he  succeeded  by  his 
firm,  temperate,  and  generous  course  in  abating  the  miseries 
of  internecine  strife  and  preserved  his  people  in  the  harmonies 
of  friendship. 

Senator  STANFORD  was  a  firm  and  strong  Republican.  He 
was  one  of  the  pioneers  of  the  Republican  party.  He  believed 
in  its  doctrines,  he  had  faith  in  its  mission,  and  he  seemed  to 
to  me  to  love  his  party  with  a  sort  of  ideal  affection.  Yet 
this  enthusiasm  for  party  creeds  and  party  leaders  found  no 
expression  in  harshness,  hatred,  or  narrowness  of  opinion  or 
action.  He  would  differ  from  his  party  when  he  thought  the 
occasion  justified  it,  both  as  to  measures  and  as  to  men.  He 
did  not  look  upon  his  opponents  as  enemies.  He  appreciated 
the  genius  of  their  action  and  the  influences  of  their  inviron- 
meuts  and  education.  He  knew  they  were  as  sincere  as  he 
was;  he  acknowledged  their  rights  to  differ  with  him  and  his, 
and  he  always  retained  their  respect  and  confidence. 

Senator  STANFORD  was  not  sectional  in  his  feelings.  However 
much  he  was  imbued  with  the  ideas  of  the  North,  in  which  he 


52  Address  of  Mr.  Daniel,  of  Virginia^  on  the 

was  born,  and  with  the  ideas  of  the  West,  of  which  he  became 
the  adopted  son,  he  really  felt  toward  all  the  people  of  this  land 
as  if  they  were  his  countrymen,  entitled  to  his  consideration 
and  to  his  friendly  interests  in  their  behalf.  I  have  often  heard 
him  talk  about  the  social  problems  which  we  have  before  us, 
the  problems  of  labor,  and  money,  and  transportation,  and 
especially  of  the  race  problem,  of  which  he  saw  much  in 
California,  and  of  which  he  knew  much  as  it  affects  the  South. 

I  think  he  understood  the  Southern  situation  as  well  as  any 
man  could  who  has  never  lived  in  that  section.  I  think  he  sym 
pathized  with  the  delicate  conditions  there  to  be  dealt  with  as 
much  as  any  man  could  who  was  not  one  of  the  vicinage,  and  I 
know  that  it  was  his  earnest  hope  and  desire  that  time  and 
nature,  the  great  healers  of  wounds  and  the  great  builders  of 
things  that  last,  might  be  left  to  work  out  the  problem  that 
the  Southern  people  have  to  contend  with.  Especially  was 
he  distressed  at  the  idea  of  rude  measures  being  adopted.  He 
knew  that  the  conception  of  them  sprung  from  irritated  minds 
and  from  misconceptions  of  possibilities.  He  knew  that  they 
would  result  in  intensifying  the  evils  which  they  would  vainly 
seek  to  correct.  He  knew  that  in  the  social  constitution,  as 
in  the  physical  constitution,  of  man,  there  are  diseases  and  per 
turbations  which  no  physician  can  reach,  either  with  com 
pounded  medicines  or  with  the  touch  of  surgical  instrument, 
and  that  rest  and  nutrition  and  cheerful  words  are  often  the 
only  remedial  agents. 

Senator  STANFORD'S  mind  was  of  a  very  peculiar  order, 
and  his  experiences  so  different  from  that  of  the  ordinary  man 
that  his  conversation  was  singularly  striking  and  interesting. 
He  loved  to  relate  reminiscences  of  his  early  history  and  his 
observations  of  men  and  things  in  different  parts  of  the  world. 
He  was  a  most  acute  observer  of  men  and  affairs  and  a  great 
lover  and  student  of  nature.  Geological  formations  of  the 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  53 

earth  attracted  his  attention,  and  he  would  quickly  observe 
indications  and  features  which  an  ordinary  man  would  pass  by 
unnoticed.  He  knew  all  the  trees  in  the  parks  around  Wash 
ington.  He  could  tell  them  from  the  bark  or  leaf,  and  he  knew 
the  qualities  and  uses  of  the  woods  which  they  produced.  He 
watched  the  courses  of  the  birds  and  the  habits  of  animals, 
and,  indeed,  the  philosophy  of  his  life  seemed  to  me  to  be 
gathered  more  directly  from  nature  than  that  of  any  man  I 
have  ever  known. 

While  he  was  college  bred  and  had  the  general  information 
that  comes  from  the  perusal  of  current  literature,  he  did  not 
rely  so  much  upon  books  as  upon  observation  and  experience. 
He  was  not  a  severe  student  of  constitutions  or  statutes,  but 
whatever  question  arose  he  seemed  to  grasp  it  in  its  relation 
to  men  and  things  and  to  construe  it  upon  lines  of  thought 
connected  with  the  development  of  affairs  and  the  betterment 
of  conditions. 

He  was  a  great  believer  in  education,  and  it  was  the  frequent 
subject  of  his  conversational  dissertation.  It  is  related  that 
when  he  contemplated  the  establishment  of  Stanford  University 
that  he  and  his  wife  together  visited  a  distinguished  college 
president  in  New  England  and  asked  what  amount  it  would 
take  to  endow  such  a  great  institution  as  he  described  to  him. 
After  studying  over  the  matter  the  college  president  answered, 
"About  five  millions  of  dollars."  He  turned  to  his  wife, 
standing  by,  and  remarked  simply,  "  Don't  you  think  we  had 
better  make  it  ten  millions,  my  dear?" 

He  had  an  inventive  and  creative  intellect.  He  was  the 
originator  of  the  use  of  the  cable  in  street-car  transportation 
in  San  Francisco,  and  invented  the  grip  first  employed  to  com 
municate  the  force  of  the  cable.  I  have  heard  that  he  was 
also  the  inventor  of  the  sand- blast,  a  process  by  which  carv- 


54  Address  of  Mr.  Daniel,  of  Virginia,  on  the 

ings  in  stone  are  quickly  made  without  tlie  use  of  the  chisel. 
The  idea  of  it  occurred  to  him  from  noticing  how  the  twig  of 
a  tree,  sheltering  a  stone  from  sands  blown  against  it  by  the 
winds  left  its  projected  shape  upon  the  stone  behind  it;  and 
he  conceived  from  this  observation  the  use  of  the  sand -blast 
in  art,  fashioning  the  plan  on  the  workings  of  nature. 

He  also  originated  the  use  of  the  instantaneous  photograph, 
employing  it  to  ascertain  the  exact  movement  of  the  horse  in 
action,  and  deducing  from  its  observations  principles  which 
he  applied  in  the  breeding  of  horses  on  his  stock  farm. 

Senator  STANFORD  was  a  wonderfully  successful  man.  He 
seemed  to  possess  the  successful  temperament.  He  foresaw 
the  movements  of  population,  the  trend  in  the  growth  of  cities, 
the  great  possibilities  of  uninhabited  territory,  and  he  applied 
his  knowledge  in  great  concerns  with  as  much  ease  as  ordinary 
men  apply  theirs  to  the  trivial  details  of  daily  existence.  He 
mastered  the  details  of  whatever  enterprise  he  undertook,  and 
he  spared  nothing  to  accomplish  the  ends  he  aimed  at.  He 
would  spend  money  as  profusely  as  a  potter  would  spend  clay 
to  make  the  mold  of  an  ideal. 

Having  conceived  that  an  electric  motor  might  be  applied 
to  sewing  machines,  and  thus  enable  housewives  and  poor 
workingwomen  to  accomplish  much  where  they  now  accom 
plished  little,  a  friend  observed  him  one  day  as  he  gave  $2,000 
to  an  inventor  who  was  trying  to  work  out  the  idea,  and  he 
remarked  at  the  time:  "This  is  the  thirtieth  man  to  whom  I 
have  given  a  like  sum  to  develop  that  idea." 

He  had  remarkable  fondness  for  the  horse,  and  he  had  faith 
in  the  capacity  of  his  development  to  greater  accomplishments 
than  any  recorded,  and  before  many  years  had  passed  by  he 
waa  the  head  of  the  American  turf,  his  trotting  horses  and  his 
thoroughbreds  alike  breaking  all  records.  Nor  was  his  pre- 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  55 

collection  a  mere  fancy  of  the  mind  or  resource  of  amusement. 
To  give  thousands  or  tens  of  thousands  for  a  horse  he  desired 
he  counted  as  nothing1.  In  results  he  made  money  and  accu 
mulated  fortunes  upon  the  expenditure  of  fortunes.  He  could 
have  talked  of  evolution  with  Darwin  and  given  him  many  a 
useful  hint  and  valuable  experience. 

There  was  something  peculiarly  soft  and  tender  in  his  domes 
tic  life.  He  and  his  beloved  wife  were  a  noble  pair  well  mated, 
and  walked  the  ways  of  life  together,  sharing  all  its  joys  and 
sorrows  in  mutuality  of  love  and  counsel.  Bereaved  as  she  is 
now,  she  has  the  sympathy  of  countless  hearts  who  share  her 
sorrow.  "Great  men,"  said  Lord  Bacon,  "have  no  continu 
ance."  And  to  him  befell  the  fate  of  being  bereaved  of  his  only 
son.  He  sought  to  fill  the  void  in  the  father's  and  mother's 
heart  by  building  a  great  university  to  be  called  after  his  son, 
and  to  be  a  monument  to  his  memory,  in  which  other  youths 
might  be  trained  and  educated.  And  in  years  to  come  the 
ingenuous  youths  of  our  country  by  scores  and  thousands  will 
gather  at  the  shrine  of  learning  which  he  has  established,  the 
fruit  of  the  affection  which  he  cherished  for  his  dead  boy. 

His  interest  in  his  employes  was  father-like.  He  believed  in 
high  wages,  but  he  sought  on  all  occasions  to  impress  upon  his 
employes  the  importance  of  saving  and  becoming  independent. 
He  was  a  kind  and  true  friend  and  a  genial  companion.  He 
was  singularly  simple  in  his  manners,  generous  in  his  hospi 
tality,  and  unostentatious  in  his  dress,  habits,  and  social  ways. 
While  he  moved  amongst  scenes  of  splendor  which  might  have 
won  the  envy  of  a  Monte  Cristo  and  dispensed  hospitality  like 
a  prince  of  the  Orient,  he  did  it  with  an  unconscious  simplicity 
which  gave  to  his  life  an  unspeakable  charm. 

Quiet  and  composed  as  he  always  seemed,  one  would  scarcely 
conceive  from  his  dignified  appearance  what  tremendous  energy 


56  Address  of  Mr.  Daniel,  of  Virginia,  on  the 

and  fire  lay  beneath  the  serene  surface,  but  when  aroused  to 
the  inspiration  of  a  great  undertaking  lie  displayed  the  con 
centrated  forces  and  rapid  movement  which  bespeak  the  quali 
ties  of  a  general  who  reads  necessities  of  battle  and  hurls  every 
element  of  strength  on  the  turning  point.  I  am  told  that  in 
driving  even  he  would  often  put  his  horses  to  their  utmost 
speed  through  long  journeys,  at  once  testing  their  qualities  and 
displaying  the  nervous  energy  and  passion  of  their  driver. 

In  the  Senate  he  was  not  amongst  its  great  debaters  or 
speakers,  but  he  served  his  State  and  country  with  fidelity  and 
ability.  He  was  amongst  the  wise  counselors,  and  his  influ 
ence  was  always  felt  for  judicious  and  patriotic  ends.  He 
had  some  ideas  which  he  was  never  able  to  impress  upon  his 
associates  as  being  practicable,  amongst  them  his  idea  of  lend 
ing  vast  amounts  of  money  upon  land.  I  have  talked  with  him 
for  hours  and  hours  upon  repeated  occasions  on  that  theme, 
and  he  often  urged  me  to  adopt  his  views  and  advocate  them. 
I  could  never  see  that  they  were  practicable,  and  with  all  my 
respect  for  him  and  desire  to  meet  his  wishes  I  could  not,  of 
course,  comply  with  his  request. 

Yet  let  me  say  that  beneath  the  difficulties  which  present 
themselves  to  such  an  idea  as  he  had  formed,  there  are  in  it 
germs  of  truth  and  wisdom  such  as  are  found  in  the  first 
evolutions  of  invention,  which,  in  a  later  and  riper  day  of  the 
world's  history,  may  be  developed  into  much  that  is  attainable 
and  good.  His  germinal  idea  was  to  put  a  fixed  value  on 
property,  as  there  is  a  fixed  value  upon  money,  and  to  make 
the  possession  of  property,  which  is  taxed  at  a  certain  value, 
the  assurance  of  the  transmutation  of  that  property  into  other 
forms  of  property  when  necessary  or  convenient ;  as  the  world's 
population  shall  increase,  and  as  financial  refinements  and 
facilities  shall  be  developed,  there  will  be  found  in  this  idea 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  57 

much  to  build  upon,  and  in  the  end  probably  some  ripe  con 
summation. 

He  was  an  enthusiastic  believer  in  the  power  and  glory  of 
this  country  and  a  great  dreamer  of  its  benevolent  mission. 
He  always  advocated  more  money  for  our  restricted  financial 
conditions  and  the  restoration  of  bimetallic  money,  to  which 
this  land  had  been  accustomed  for  well  nigh  a  hundred  years. 
In  this  he  departed  from  the  views  of  many  capitalists,  whom 
he  thought  somewhat  narrow  in  comprehension  of  their  own 
permanent  interests,  and  indicated,  as  I  fancied,  his  sympathy 
with  the  struggling  masses  of  humanity. 

I  can  not  say  that  I  was  ever  intimate  with  Senator  STAN 
FORD,  though  as  a  member  of  the  Committee  on  Public  Build 
ings  and  Grounds,  of  which  he  was  chairman,  I  was  often  thrown 
in  familiar  intercourse  with  him,  and  enjoyed  with  him  many 
days  and  hours  of  agreeable  companionship.  In  the  refined 
courtesies  which  bespeak  the  gentleman  I  have  never  known 
him  to  be  surpassed.  Xo  word  that  he  ever  uttered,  either  in 
private  conversation  or  in  public  debate,  could  offend  the  sensi 
bilities  of  any  citizen  of  our  country. 

Of  a  robust  constitution,  it  might  have  been  expected  that 
his  life  would  have  been  prolonged  beyond  the  threescore  and 
ten  of  man's  allotted  time,  but  he  died  at  Palo  Alto,  his  Cali 
fornia  country  home,  on  June  21  last,  ere  he  had  quite  attained 
his  seventieth  year. 

In  common  with  all  who  knew  him,  I  shall  cherish  of  him 
the  most  agreeable  recollections.  The  world  is  better  that  he 
lived  in  it,  and  many  a  heart  that  has  been  made  happy  by  his 
generosity  felt  a  pang  of  sorrow  when  he  died.  The  fear  of 
death  is  doubtless  implanted  in  the  human  soul,  because  God 
and  nature  have  uses  for  the  living  and  work  for  them  to  do 
which  they  should  not  lay  down  undone;  but  when  we  see  that 
death  is  universal  it  should  afflict  us  with  no  mortal  dread. 


58  Address  of  Mr.  Daniel,  of  Virginia,  on  the 

Well  has  the  late  laureate  of  England  described  the  succes 
sive  stages  of  nature,  from  the  bud  to  the  fruit,  from  the  fruit 
to  decay : 

Lo !  in  the  middle  of  the  wood 

The  folded  leaf  is  woo'd  from  out  the  bud 

With  winds  upou  the  branch,  and  there 

Grows  green  and  takes  no  care. 

Sun-steeped  at  noon,  and  on  the  moon 

Nightly  dew-fed;  and  turning  yellow, 

Falls  and  floats  adown  the  air. 

Lo!  sweetened  with  the  summer  light, 

The  full-juiced  apple  waxing  over  mellow, 

Drops  in  a  silent  autumn  night, 

All  its  allotted  length  of  days. 

The  flower  ripens  in  its  place — 

Ripens  and  fades  and  falls, 

And  hath  no  toil 

Fast  rooted  in  the  soil. 

Such,  too,  is  human  life — like  the  fruit,  waxing  over-mellow 
and  returning  again  to  the  earth,  from  which  it  sprung. 

So,  now  that  our  kind,  good  friend  has  passed  away,  we 
should  not  veil  his  bier  in  tears.  He  had  lived  his  life;  he  had 
done  his  work;  he  had  found  happiness,  such  as  it  may  be 
permitted  mortal  to  possess  or  that  earth  could  give;  and, 
what  is  most,  he  had  conferred  much  happiness  and  benefaction 
upon  others.  It  was  said  of  old  that  it  was  easier  for  the 
camel  to  go  through  the  eye  of  a  needle  than  for  a  rich  man 
to  enter  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven.  Whatever  may  be  the 
temptations  that  assail  the  rich  and  powerful,  surely  one  who 
earned  to  give  as  he  did  and  who  only  treated  power  as 
opportunity  of  good  should  find  no  impediment  toward  the 
highest  destiny  which  may  await  hereafter  the  spirits  of  the 
just.  Even  as  the  sparks  fly  upward,  it  would  seem  to  me  only 
in  accord  with  the  eternal  harmonies  of  the  universe  that  his 
spirit,  in  quitting  its  earthly  tenement,  should  find  rest  in  the 
bosom  of  his  Father  and  his  God. 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  59 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  STEWART,  OF  NEVADA. 

Mr.  PRESIDENT:  Senator  STANFORD  was  my  friend.  I 
enjoyed  his  friendship  for  more  than  forty  years.  He  was  a 
strong  character,  of  the  best  American  type.  In  his  childhood 
and  early  youth  he  possessed  the  best  possible  advantages 
which  our  country  afforded.  He  was  raised  on  a  farm,  where 
he  had  an  opportunity  to  observe,  and  did  observe,  the  source 
of  wealth,  prosperity,  and  civilization.  He  knew  as  a  boy 
land,  soils,  and  crops,  and  the  means  of  utilizing  them.  He 
became  familiar  with  animals  and  their  use ;  with  trees,  plants, 
and  birds.  He  learned  the  use  of  tools  and  implements  of 
husbandry.  He  realized  early  in  his  eventful  life  that  the 
storehouse  of  nature  is  abundantly  supplied  with  all  things 
necessary  for  the  good  of  man.  The  book  of  nature  was  his 
guide.  Literature  and  science,  which  illustrated  that  book 
and  revealed  its  hidden  mysteries,  most  interested  him.  He 
fully  comprehended  the  great  truth  so  often  expressed  by  him, 
that  the  earth  and  the  elements  are  abundantly  sufficient  to 
supply  the  ever-increasing  wants  of  man. 

He  was  a  utilitarian,  and  dedicated  his  career  to  the  creation 
of  wealth  by  developing  the  resources  of  the  West.  In  his 
youth  he  had  witnessed  the  marvelous  development  of  the 
interior  of  the  great  State  of  New  York  by  means  of  the  Erie 
Canal  and  other  internal  improvements.  In  his  early  manhood 
he  saw,  while  a  resident  of  Wisconsin,  the  magic  effect  of  rail 
roads  upon  the  progress  and  development  of  the  great  Missis 
sippi  Valley.  When  he  made  his  home  in  the  golden  State  of 
California  he  was  possessed  of  the  spirit  of  enterprise  and 
equipped  with  knowledge  of  affairs.  He  at  once  devoted  his 
energies  to  utilizing  the  resources  of  that  new  and  undeveloped 
country. 


60  Address  of  Mr.  Stewart,  of  Nevada,  on  the 

The  Pacific  coast  was  then  a  far-off  region.  It  took  longer 
to  cross  the  uninhabited  plains  and  rugged  mountains  which 
intervened  between  the  East  and  the  West  than  is  now  required 
for  a  voyage  around  the  world.  A  Pacific  railroad  to  unite  the 
Atlantic  and  Pacific  oceans  was  a  dream  of  the  distant  future. 
It  was  only  a  dream.  Xo  man  ever  hoped  to  realize  that  dream 
in  his  own  generation.  The  war  of  the  rebellion  forced  upon 
the  attention  of  the  country  the  isolated  and  defenseless  posi 
tion  of  the  region  of  the  Pacific,  but  the  people  of  all  sec 
tions  shrank  from  the  mighty  undertaking  of  binding  the 
two  sections  together  with  iron  bands,  thus  cementing  the 
Union. 

Five  resolute  men  in  the  little  town  of  Sacramento,  in  the 
interior  of  California — LELAND  STANFORD,  C.  P.  Huntuigton, 
Mark  Hopkins,  E.  B.  Crocker,  and  his  brother,  Charles 
Crocker — brought  upon  themselves  the  gibes  and  jeers  of 
the  thoughtless  multitude  by  the  organization  of  a  company 
to  construct  a  Pacific  railroad.  The  project  to  scale  the  dizzy 
heights  of  the  Sierra  and  Rocky  Mountains,  to  traverse  the 
dreary  plains,  supposed  to  be  uninhabitable  deserts,  with  a 
railroad  of  unlimited  cost,  was  treated  with  ridicule  and  con 
tempt  by  nearly  every  man  of  wealth  in  the  State  of  California. 
The  press  of  San  Francisco,  the  metropolis  of  the  Pacific  coast, 
denounced  the  project  as  a  wild  scheme  of  visionary  cranks. 

The  five  men  who  projected  the  enterprise,  unaffected  by  the 
opinions  of  others,  pressed  on  with  supreme  faith  and  undaunted 
courage.  They  appealed  for  encouragement  and  aid  to  the 
State  of  California  and  the  counties  immediately  affected  by 
the  road,  and  obtained  some  assistance  by  guaranty  of  credit; 
but  the  work  was  too  great  for  local  enterprise.  They  applied 
to  Congress,  and,  in  cooperation  with  enterprising  men  of  the 
East,  secured  legislation  which  enabled  them  to  complete  the 
work,  realize  the  object  of  their  ambition,  lead  the  way  to  the 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  61 

development  of  the  empire  of  the  West  aud  to  the  creation  of 
a  cordon  of  States  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific. 

The  promoters  of  this  great  enterprise  are  all  dead  but  one. 
Mr.  0.  P.  Huntington,  the  now  president,  who  was  vice-presi- 
dent  and  financial  manager  of  the  company  from  beginning-  to 
end,  is  the  only  survivor. 

LELAND  STANFORD  was  governor  of  California  during  the 
rebellion,  and  was  counted  one  of  the  great  war  governors.     He__ 
was  the  right  man  for  the  time  and  place,  aud  contributed 
largely  in  encouraging  and  maintaining  loyalty  to  the  Union 
and  preserving  peace  and  good  order  on  the  Pacific  coast. 

"We  knew  Senator  STANFORD  here  after  his  great  labor  had 
injured  his  health  and  deprived  him  of  the  physical  vigor 
which  had  distinguished  him  as  a  man  of  great  affairs ;  but 
his  judgment  was  unimpaired.  His  knowledge  of  business  and 
of  the  legitimate  functions  of  government  made  him  a  safe 
adviser  and  a  useful  and  valuable  member  of  this  body.  His 
kind  heart,  generous  nature,  and  deep  sympathy  for  the  masses 
endeared  him  to  every  member  of  the  Senate.  No  Senator 
who  entered  the  Chamber  was  greeted  more  cordially  or  appre 
ciated  more  highly  than  Senator  STANFORD  during  all  the  time 
he  took  part  in  the  counsels  of  the  Senate.  Every  suggestion 
he  made,  every  speech  he  delivered,  and  every  bill  he  intro 
duced  had  for  its  object  the  good  of  all  the  people, 

But  it  was  as  a  private  citizen  that  his  desire  to  benefit 
his  fellow-man  was  most  conspicuously  exemplified.  Mrs. 
Stanford,  who  survives  him,  is  also  a  conspicuous  character. 
They  had  an  only  sou,  a  youth  of  great  promise,  around  whom 
their  hearts  were  entwined  and  in  whom  their  hopes  were 
centered.  Some  years  ago  he  was  taken  from  them.  They 
were  left  childless,  so  far  as  their  own  blood  and  lineage  were 
concerned;  but  they  did  not  remain  isolated  from  the  world. 
They  made,  by  adoption,  the  children  of  the  people  their  own 


62  Address  of  Mr.  Stewart,  of  Nevada,  on  tkz 

children,  aud  dedicated  their  lives  and  fortune  to  the  youth  of 
their  country,  both  those  now  living  and  those  who  come  after 
us.  They  devoted  their  joint  energies  with  renewed  hope  and 
vigor  to  the  establishment  of  a  university  for  the  education  of 
youth  of  both  sexes  in  all  branches  of  science,  learning,  and 
literature  which  contribute  to  the  elevation  of  the  race  and  to 
the  development  of  the  resources  of  nature  from  which  the 
wants  of  man  are  supplied.  Their  devotion  to  this  great  object 
did  not  render  them  unmindful  of  the  poor  and  unfortunate, 
and  they  lost  no  opportunity  to  confer  unostentatious  charity 
and  relieve  want  to  the  extent  of  their  power. 

Mrs.  Stanford  is  left  alone  to  carry  out  the  grand  enterprise 
which  they  jointly  undertook  some  years  ago,  when  it  was 
agreed  that  the  survivor,  whichever  it  might  be,  on  the  death 
of  the  other,  should  continue  during  life  to  perform  the  work 
of  both.  Mrs.  Stanford  is  now  devoting  her  life  to  placing 
the  Leland  Stanford  Junior  University  upon  a  firm  and 
enduring  basis.  The  death  of  her  beloved  son,  in  whose  honor 
the  university  is  named,  and  the  loss  of  her  husband  and 
co worker,  would  discourage  a  woman  of  less  faith  and  hope 
than  she  possesses.  But  the  confident  belief  that  her  husband 
and  son  would  approve  of  her  good  work  gives  her  strength 
and  courage  which  nothing  else  could  bestow. 

During  the  long  residence  of  Senator  STANFORD  in  California 
as  war  governor,  United  States  Senator,  and  private  citizen  he 
enjoyed  the  love  and  respect  of  the  people.  Bitter  rivalries 
and  political  strifes,  which  are  always  attended  with  jealousies 
and  heart-burnings,  never  broke  the  sympathetic  chord  which 
bound  him  to  the  people  of  California.  But  the  respect,  love, 
and  affection  which  his  good  deeds  inspired  have  at  all  times 
secured  for  him  a  warm  place  in  the  hearts  of  his  fellow-men. 
The  labors  of  Mrs.  Stanford  will  be  aided  and  assisted  by  the 
profound  sympathy  and  kindly  feelings  not  only  of  the  people 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  63 

of  the  Pacific  coast,  but  also  of  all  the  people  of  our  common 
country. 

The  life  of  Senator  STANFORD  is  not  only  valuable  for  the 
good  he  did  while  living,  but  the  beneficial  effects  upon  the 
present  and  coming  generations  of  the  example  his  life  has 
furnished  can  not  be  overestimated.  The  lives  of  the  great  and 
good  men  who  have  preceded  us  shape  and  mold  our  destiny ; 
and  as  time  rolls  on  those  who  now  act  well  their  part  will  also 
contribute  to  mold  the  character,  shape  the  institutions,  and 
improve  the  conditions  of  generations  yet  unborn.  We  can 
say  of  Senator  STANFORD:  "Well  done,  thou  good  and  faith 
ful  servant.  You  have  contributed  your  full  share  to  make 
others  happier  and  better."  We  extend  our  heartfelt  sym 
pathy  to  his  sorrowing  widow,  who,  while  she  mourns,  has  the 
consolation  of  knowing  that  the  memory  of  her  deceased 
husband  is  cherished  and  respected  by  all  the  people  of  the 
great  country  which  he  loved  and  served  so  well. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  VEST,  OF  MISSOURI. 

Mr.  PRESIDENT:  I  knew  Governor  STANFORD  very  well. 
He  was  chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Public  Buildings  and 
Grounds,  of  which  I  have  been  a  member  since  I  came  to  the 
Senate.  During  the  latter  years  of  his  life  disease  and  grow 
ing  infirmity  brought  him  very  close  to  the  younger  members 
of  the  committee.  His  personality  was  always  exceedingly 
interesting  and  unique.  He  had  a  very  peculiar  mental  organ 
ization.  His  mind  seemed  to  work  very  slowly  and  with  great 
deliberation,  but  it  had  that  highest  attribute  of  mentality, 
the  power  of  analysis.  I  studied  him  from  time  to  time  with 
much  interest  and  curiosity.  The  secret  of  his  great  success 
in  life  seemed  to  lie  in  his  tenacity  of  purpose  and  inflexi- 


64  Address  of  Mr,  Vest,  of  Missouri,  on  the 

bility  of  opinion  when  once  formed.     It  amounted  almost  to 
obstinacy. 

After  once  having  come  to  a  conclusion  he  adhered  to  it  with 
almost  fanatical  devotion.  He  was  further  removed  than  any 
man  I  ever  knew  from  agnosticism.  He  had  no  sort  of  sym 
pathy  with  the  cowardly  philosophy  of  the  agnostic,  which  tries 
to  solve  the  great  problems  of  life  and  eternity  by  simply 
saying  "I  do  not  know."  He  was  a  Christian  in  the  highest 
and  best  sense  of  the  term.  He  believed  in  the  religion  of 
humanity,  and  trusted  implicitly  his  welfare  here  and  hereafter 
to  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount. 

Teach  me  to  feel  another's  woe, 

To  hide  the  fault  I  see ; 
That  mercy  I  to  others  show, 

That  mercy  show  to  rne. 

He  brought  the  sunshine  into  thousands  of  darkened  hearts 
and  homes,  for  this  was  the  inevitable  result  of  the  belief  he 
had  in  the  eternal  truths  of  the  Christian  religion. 

In  the  latter  part  of  his  life  he  devoted  all  his  energies  to 
two  great  ideas.  First,  his  system  of  currency  and  taxation 
based  on  real  estate,  with  which  I  never  had  the  slightest 
sympathy.  Like  the  Senator  from  Virginia  [Mr.  DANIEL],  I 
listened  to  him  for  hours  upon  this  question  and  could  not  but 
admire  his  earnestness  and  force,  but  they  never  produced 
with  me  the  slightest  conviction. 

His  other  great  idea,  to  which  he  devoted  all  his  energies, 
was  the  founding  of  a  vast  educational  institution.  I  shared 
for  some  time  after  I  first  became  acquainted  with  him  in  the 
popular  error  that  this  was  simply  a  sentiment  allied  with 
deep  love  for  his  dead  boy  in  whose  grave  he  had  placed  his 
heart.  I  found  in  conversation  that  I  was  mistaken. 

In  speaking  to  me  about  this  great  university  and  explain 
ing  its  plans,  he  said  that  he  had  hesitated  long  between 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  65 

devoting  his  fortune  to  a  vast  hospital  or  to  a  university;  but 
that  he  had  come  to  the  conclusion  that  his  duty  was  to  endow 
this  educational  institution  in  the  interest  of  humanity  and  of 
the  American  people,  "for,"  he  said,  and  it  made  a  great 
impression  upon  me,  "in  a  country  with  our  autonomy  and 
universal  suffrage  the  safety  of  the  Republic  must  rest  upon 
the  educated  intelligence  of  the  people."  I  called  his  atten 
tion  at  the  time  to  the  fact  that  in  this  he  agreed  with  Mr. 
Jefferson,  who,  in  one  of  his  letters  to  a  friend,  explained  that 
the  crowning  honor  of  his  life  and  the  crowning  work  of  all 
his  labors  had  been  the  founding  of  the  University  of  Vir 
ginia,  because,  in  almost  the  same  language,  he  said  "upon 
the  educated  intelligence  of  the  American  people  must  rest 
the  hope  of  future  generations." 

I  had  occasion  in  the  same  conversation  to  call  Governor 
STANFORD'S  attention  to  this  language  and  to  the  emphasis 
.  which  Jefferson  gave  in  writing  his  own  epitaph  to  his  idea  of 
the  necessity  of  education  for  a  republican  people  like  ours. 
Jefferson  had  been  a  member  of  the  house  of  burgesses  of 
Virginia,  governor  of  the  Commonwealth,  minister  to  France, 
Vice-President  of  the  United  States,  twice  elected  President 
of  the  Republic,  and  yet  in  that  epitaph  upon  the  obelisk  which 
he  caused  to  be  erected  over  his  grave  none  of  these  titular 
honors  are  found. 

Here  lies  Thomas  Jefferson,  author  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence, 
of  the  statute  of  Virginia  for  religious  freedom,  and  father  of  the  Uni 
versity  of  Virginia. 

Ill  his  own  estimation  he  crowned  his  long  and  illustrious 
career,  as  did  LELAND  STANFORD,  with  the  erection  of  a 
university  which  should  set  free  the  imprisoned  intellect  held 
down  by  the  iron  band  of  poverty  and  circumstances. 

Mr.  President,  there  are  two  incidents  in  the  public  career  of 
Governor  STANFORD  that  made  upon  me  and  others  who  sym- 
S.  Mis.  122 5 


66  Address  of  Mr.  Vest,  of  Missouri,  on  the 

patbized  with  me  a  profound  impression.  As  iny  friend  from 
Virginia  has  said,  he  was  a  great  man,  because  that  man  is 
essentially  great  who  can  throw  off  the  prejudices  of  education 
and  locality  and  rise  to  the  necessities  of  the  race  to  which  he 
belongs. 

One  touch  of  nature  makes  the  whole  world  kin. 

And  a  man  who  recognizes  this  has  in  him  the  elements  of 
greatness. 

I  trust  that  I  infringe  upon  none  of  the  proprieties  of  the 
occasion  in  alluding  to  these  two  incidents,  well  known  to  my 
brother  Senators. 

Governor  STANFORD  first  attained  celebrity  and  a  national 
reputation  as  the  war  governor  of  California.  He  was  an 
intense  Union  man.  He  had  not  the  slightest  sympathy  with 
what  he  called  the  crime  of  the  rebellion.  He  knew  little  of 
the  Southern  people  except  historically.  He  did  his  duty 
faithfully  to  the  cause  to  which  his  opinions  and  feelings 
brought  him,  and  during  the  darkest  hours  of  that  cause. 

When  the  nomination  of  Lamar  was  sent  to  the  Senate  for 
associate  justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  a 
determined  effort  was  made  to  defeat  it.  Party  lines  were 
attempted  to  be  drawn  and  sectional  feeling  was  attempted  to 
be  aroused.  Governor  STANFORD,  in  a  conversation  with  me, 
gave  his  reasons  for  favoring  that  confirmation.  He  said :  "No 
man  sympathized  more  sincerely  than  myself  with  the  cause 
of  the  Union  or  deprecated  more  the  course  of  the  South.  I 
would  have  given  fortune  and  life  to  have  defeated  that  cause. 
But  the  war  has  terminated,  and  what  this  country  needs  now 
is  absolute  and  profound  peace.  Lamar  was  a  representative 
Southern  man  and  adhered  to  the  convictions  of  his  boyhood 
and  manhood.  I  respect  such  a  man.  There  can  never  be 
pacification  in  this  country  until  these  war  memories  are  oblit 
erated  by  the  action  of  the  Executive  and  of  Congress." 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  67 

Again,  wheii  the  force  bill  was  pending  and  when  the  most 
determined  efforts  were  made  to  draw  him  to  the  support  of 
that  measure,  for  the  reasons  which  he  had  already  given  in 
regard  to  the  Lamar  nomination,  he  deliberately  and  positively 
opposed  that  measure  upon  the  ground,  as  he  stated  to  me,  that 
its  drastic  operation  would  renew  the  bitterness  of  feeling  in 
the  Southern  States  which  had  existed  during  the  war. 

But,  Mr.  President,  as  has  been  said  here,  it  is  not  upon  his 
public  life  or  his  business  methods  that  the  fame  of  Governor 
STANFORD  will  rest.  It  is  upon  that  charity  and  kindliness, 
that  philanthropy,  which  marked  his  career  and  caused  him 
to  dedicate  his  fortune  to  the  interests  of  humanity,  that  his 
memory  will  go  down  to  succeeding  generations.  His  name 
will  be  remembered,  not  only  upon  the  shores  of  the  Pacific 
and  in  the  canyons  of  the  Sierras,  but  throughout  the  civilized 
world,  when  that  of  every  other  man  in  the  Senate  will  have 
faded  into  oblivion.  The  world  never  forgets  men  who  have 
illustrated  the  true  and  proper  use  of  wealth,  as  he  has  done. 

Some  years  ago  I  listened  to  an  eloquent  lecturer  who 
depicted  a  shipwreck,  where  the  desperate  swimmers  went 
down  battling  with  the  eager  waves  that  dragged  them  to 
death,  and  on  the  shore  of  the  ocean  stood  a  multimillion 
aire  with  a  vast  lumber  yard,  every  plank  in  which  was  a  life- 
preserver  ;  and  yet  he  gave  not  one  splinter,  because  he  was 
not  paid  for  it.  The  most  despicable  character  that  can  be 
known  or  invented  is  that  of  a  miser  who  clutches  his  gold 
because  it  is  gold  and  hoards  it  from  intense  selfishness.  But 
the  man  who  considers  himself  a  trustee  of  the  bounty  that 
God  hath  given  him,  who  succors  the  poor,  the  needy,  the  dis 
tressed,  typifies  the  omniscient  mercy  of  that  great  Being  who 
creates  and  guides  all  things. 

Governor  STANFORD  has  erected  before  all  the  world  a  mag 
nificent  mausoleum  in  the  university  founded  by  his  wealth, 


68          Address  of  Mr.  Perkins,  of  California,  on  the 

but  a  more  enduring  monument  is  that  of  bis  good  deeds  and 
kindly  words.  If  every  human  being-  to  whom  he  had  done  a 
kindness  could  place  one  leaf  upon  his  grave,  he  would  sleep 
to-night  beneath  a  mountain  of  foliage. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR,  PERKINS,  OF  CALIFORNIA, 

Mr.  PRESIDENT:  In  accordance  with  a  time-honored  custom 
in  the  Senate,  it  seems  eminently  proper  that  among  my  first 
utterances  before  this  august  body  should  be  a  memorial  tribute 
to  my  distinguished  predecessor,  LELAND  STANFORD,  whose 
seat  I  am  for  the  time  called  upon  to  occupy. 

For  eight  years  past  he  represented  the  State  of  California 
in  the  highest  councils  of  the  nation,  and  on  the  21st  of  last 
June,  at  his  beautiful  country  home  at  Palo  Alto,  he  peace 
fully  passed  to  that  bourne  from  which  no  traveler  returns. 
The  many  eulogies  which  his  death  have  called  forth  show 
what  a  large  place  he  filled  in  the  esteem  and  affection  of  his 
fellow-men,  and  make  me  painfully  aware  of  my  own  inability 
to  do  justice  to  his  merits  as  a  man,  his  eminence  as  a  citizen, 
his  record  as  a  philanthropist,  and  his  illustrious  services  to 
his  country  and  his  kind. 

LELAND  STANFORD  was  born  on  the  9th  day  of  March,  1824, 
at  Watervliet,  Albany  County,  N.  Y.  He  came  of  sturdy  and 
honorable  English  ancestry,  identified  for  two  centuries  with 
the  best  traditions  of  New  England  life.  The  father  of  Senator 
STANFORD  removed  early  in  the  present  century  from  Massachu 
setts  to  the  State  of  New  York  and  became  a  thrifty  and  highly 
respected  farmer  and  successful  railroad  contractor.  Amid  the 
beautiful  scenery  of  the  Mohawk  Valley,  the  robust  and  healthful 
associations  of  farm  life,  and  such  instruction  as  the  neighbor 
ing  schools  afforded,  the  boy  grew  up  strong  in  body,  sound  in 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  69 

mind,  loving  nature,  honoring  manual  labor,  eager  for  practical 
information,  and  learning  to  master  himself.  He  was  early  noted 
for  his  sterling  good  sense,  his  cheerfulness,  and  kindliness  of 
heart.  At  20  years  of  age  he  began  the  study  of  law,  and  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  in  1849.  In  the  same  year  he  sought  the 
larger  opportunities  of  the  great  West,  removing  to  Port  Wash 
ington,  Wis.,  where  he  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  profession. 
He  returned  to  Albany  in  1850  to  be  married  to  Miss  Jane 
Lathrop,  the  daughter  of  a  respected  merchant  of  that  city,  a 
woman  of  a  largeness  of  nature  and  generous  impulses  corre 
sponding  with  his  own.  Having  thus  assured  his  domestic  hap 
piness,  he  returned  to  Port  Washington  with  his  young  wife. 
Two  years  later  he  was  overtaken  by  a  calamity  which  even 
tually  proved  to  be  the  turning  point  in  his  fortunes  and  led  to 
the  eventful  and  auspicious  years  that  were  to  follow.  A  fire 
destroyed  his  law  library  and  household  effects  and  left  the 
young  couple  to  begin  the  world  over  again.  This  event  con 
firmed  his  half  formed  inclination  to  remove  to  California, 
where  his  brothers  had  already  established  themselves.  On 
the  12th  of  July,  1852,  LELAND  STANFORD  stepped  on  the  soil 
of  the  golden  State  to  begin  that  career  which,  whether  it  be 
contemplated  from  the  standpoint  of  business  success,  indus 
trial  enterprise,  patriotic  service,  or  philanthropic  devotion,  is 
full  of  honorable  testimony  to  his  worth  as  a  man  and  a  citizen. 
After  various  attempts  at  mining  and  trading  in  the  interior 
counties,  Mr.  STANFORD  engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits  in 
Sacramento,  in  partnership  with  his  brothers.  In  1850  the 
firm  removed  to  San  Francisco,  and  speedily  acquired  a  reputa 
tion  for  honorable  dealing  and  sagacity ;  and  it  was  here  that 
Mr.  STANFORD  laid  the  foundation  of  his  financial  prosperity. 
To  this  period  is  also  to  be  ascribed  Mr.  STANFORD'S  first 
entry  into  political  life.  It  was  a  time  of  intense  agitation; 
questions  of  vital  import  to  the  nation  and  to  humanity  were 


70          Address  of  Mr.  Perkins,  of  California,  on  the 

being  discussed  in  Congress  and  among  the  people;  political 
parties  were  being  formed  and  reformed.  It  was  impossible 
for  a  man  of  patriotic  and  liberty-loving  impulses  not  to  be 
profoundly  stirred  by  the  issues  and  events  that  attended  the 
birth  of  the  Republican  party  at  the  outbreak  of  the  civil  war. 
Because  of  the  larger  mold  in  which  he  was  cast  LELAND 
STANFORD  was  naturally  a  leader  of  men.  In  1857  he  was 
the  unsuccessful  candidate  of  the  party  for  State  treasurer, 
and  later  received  an  unsought  and  uudesired  nomination  for 
governor.  He  first  became  prominent  in  national  affairs  when, 
in  1860,  he  attended  as  a  delegate  the  Republican  convention 
in  Chicago  which  nominated  Abraham  Lincoln.  He  witnessed 
the  inauguration  of  President  Lincoln  and  for  some  time  after 
remained  in  Washington,  enjoying  the  confidence  of  the 
nation's  chief,  being  his  trusted  adviser  with  regard  to  matters 
in  California. 

In  the  meantime  the  awful  struggle  for  union  and  liberty 
began,  and  the  war  cloud  drifted  slowly  over  to  the  Pacific 
coast.  Mr.  STANFORD  returned  to  his  adopted  State  to  find  it 
convulsed  with  the  throes  of  anticipated  civil  conflict.  The 
disunion  element  was  large,  well  organized,  and  determined. 
The  seductive  vision  of  an  independent  Pacific  republic  was 
undermining  the  loyalty  of  many.%  There  was  urgent  need  of 
prompt  and  efficient  action  on  the  part  of  patriotic  citizens  and 
believers  in  a  United  States. 

The  events  that  followed  are  a  matter  of  well-known  history, 
a  chapter  in  the  political  evolution  of  California  to  which  its 
loyal  people  to-day  point  with  justifiable  pride.  Suffice  it  to 
say  that  in  the  counsels  and  measures  then  taken  to  assure 
the  safety  of  the  Union  LELAND  STANFORD  bore  a  conspicuous 
part.  If  Starr  King  was  the  eloquent  voice  of  the  Union 
sentiment  and  Gen.  Sumner  its  strong  sword  arm,  LELAND 
STANFORD  was  its  faithful  standard-bearer  and  efficient  organ- 


Life  and  Character  of  Lei  and  Stanford.  71 

izer  for  action*  Out  of  the  fusion  of  political  elements  in  the 
white  heat  of  that  hour  the  Union  party  came  forth  with 
LELAND  STANFORD  as  its  candidate  for  governor.  It  swept 
the  State  with  a  great  moral  as  well  as  political  victory;  and, 
as  if  to  mark  the  people's  confidence  in  Mr.  STANFORD,  he  ran 
6,000  votes  ahead  of  his  ticket.  In  the  trying  and  difficult 
services  that  followed  this  popular  confidence  was  vindicated. 
None  could  question  his  loyalty  to  the  national  idea,  his 
courage  and  devotion  to  the  best  interests  of  the  State.  The 
partisan  passions  of  that  day  have  cooled,  and  the  wisdom  and 
patriotism  of  California's  great  war  governor  are  universally 
appreciated. 

Not  least  among  the  laurels  we  lay  upon  his  grave  is  the  sor 
row  of  a  State  for  a  lost  leader,  for  a  wise  executive,  to  whom 
it  was  so  largely  owing  that  no  American  Commonwealth  was 
more  loyal  to  the  national  idea  than  California,  none  responded 
more  promptly  to  the  appeals  of  the  central  Government  or 
gave  with  more  lavish  and  sympathetic  bounty  to  the  wounded 
and  suffering  soldier.  The  Loyal  Legion  of  the  United  States 
utters  the  popular  sentiment  when,  in  a  recent  circular  com 
memorating  its  deceased  member,  it  declares:  "His  name  will 
go  down  in  history  as  the  war  governor  of  California,  and  that 
distinction  was  one  of  his  proudest  boasts." 

Believed  from  public  duties  at  the  end  of  his  term,  Mr.  STAN 
FORD  found  awaiting  him  a  task  worthy  of  his  large  adminis 
trative  and  executive  abilities — the  building  of  the  Central 
Pacific  Kailroad.  More  and  more  as  the  war  progressed  the 
unfortunate  isolation  of  California  from  the  rest  of  the  country 
had  become  manifest.  There  was  an  increasing  demand  for 
improved  means  of  communication  between  the  new  settle 
ments  on  the  shores  of  the  Pacific  and  the  populous  States  of 
the  East.  A  transcontinental  railroad  was  needed  to  facilitate 
the  rapid  transportation  of  troops  and  war  material  to  aid  in 


72          Address  of  Mr.  Perkins,  of  California,  on  the 

holding  in  check  the  hostile  Indian  tribes  of  the  far  West,  and 
to  develop  the  possible  resources  of  the  vast  region  which 
stretched  an  almost  unbroken  wilderness  from  California  to 
Nebraska.  It  was  an  undertaking  of  unparalleled  magnitude 
and  audacity,  which  seemed  to  antedate  the  requirements  and 
resources  of  the  country  by  half  a  century.  The  tremendous 
obstacles  in  the  way  of  its  successful  accomplishment  might 
well  appall  the  most  sanguine  nature,  and  justified  the  want  of 
confidence  with  which  the  scheme  was  received  at  home  and 
the  apathy  it  encountered  abroad.  The  huge  snow-clad  chain 
of  the  Sierra  Nevadas,  whose  towering  steeps  nowhere  per 
mitted  a  thoroughfare  at  an  elevation  less  than  7,000  feet 
above  the  sea,  must  be  crossed;  great  deserts,  waterless  and 
roamed  by  savage  tribes,  must  be  made  accessible;  vast  sums 
of  money  must  be  raised  and  national  aid  secured  at  a  time  in 
which  the  credit  of  the  central  Government  had  fallen  so  low 
that  its  bonds  of  guaranty  to  the  undertaking  sold  for  barely 
one-third  their  face  value.  To  men  with  less  foresight,  courage, 
and  resources  of  mind  and  will  than  Mr.  STANFORD  and  his 
associates  the  carrying  out  of  the  scheme  would  have  been 
impossible.  There  is  no  need  to  dwell  upon  the  details  of  this 
great  work  of  internal  improvement.  Mountains  were  leveled 
or  surmounted,  frightful  precipices  scaled,  yawning  chasms 
were  bridged  over  or  filled  with  lofty  trestlework,  the  iron 
track  was  clamped  on  the  freshly  upturned  soil  at  the  rate  of 
530  miles  in  two  hundred  and  ninety-three  days.  Kapid  com 
munication  between  the  East  and  the  West  was  assured,  and 
vast  territories,  including  over  one-half  the  domain  of  the 
United  States,  were  redeemed  to  settlement,  productivity,  and 
civilization.  Even  now,  while  I  am  speaking,  high  up  in  the 
dome  hall  of  this  Capitol  of  the  nation,  the  artist's  hand  is  at 
work  completing  the  group  that  encircles  the  rotunda,  depict 
ing  the  principal  events  in  the  march  of  our  country's  prog- 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  73 

ress.  This  closing  link  in  the  circle  portrays  the  driving  of 
the  last  spike  of  the  first  railroad  that  spans  a  continent  and 
unites  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific  with  bands  of  steel,  and 
inspiring  a  nation  with  increased  patriotism.  It  was  an  event 
ful  day  in  the  life  of  LELAND  STANFORD,  when,  on  May  10, 
18G9,  at  Promontory  Point,  as  president  of  the  Central  Pacific 
Kailway,  he  drove  the  last  and  silver  spike  that  marked  the 
successful  completion  of  the  work.  There  met  the  two  indus 
trial  armies,  not  for  the  clash  of  war,  but  to  celebrate  the 
benignant  victories  of  peace,  the  triumphs  of  the  human  will 
and  invention  over  physical  barriers  and  rude  nature's  forces, 
the  glorification  of  intelligent  labor  and  cooperative  industry. 

The  picture  of  those  two  engineers,  as  they  stood  at  the 
forefront  of  their  locomotives  and  filled  the  gap  between,  with 
their  outstretched  hands  clasped  in  fraternal  greeting,  will  go 
down  to  posterity  the  symbol  of  a  new  era  of  human  sympa 
thy  between  the  Eastern  and  Western  sections  of  our  common 
country,  the  pledge  of  their  eternal  amity  and  indissoluble 
union. 

Mr.  STANFORD'S  career  after  that  crowning  day  was  less 
laborious,  but  he  continued  to  fill  a  large  space  in  the  annals 
of  his  time,  and  to  devote  himself  with  unwavering  fidelity  to 
the  welfare  of  his  country  and  his  fellow-men.  In  1885  he  was 
elected  United  States  Senator  from  California  for  the  full  term 
of  six  years,  and  reelected  in  1891  for  another  term,  which, 
alas !  he  has  not  been  permitted  to  complete.  His  career  in 
the  Senate  is  more  familiar  to  his  fellow  Senators  whom  I  am 
privileged  to  address  than  even  to  myself,  his  sorrowing  friend 
and  successor.  Without  any  claims  to  the  gifts  of  oratory, 
sadly  handicapped  by  severe  domestic  affliction,  and  in  later 
years  by  increasing  bodily  infirmities,  his  voice  was  less  and 
less  often  heard  in  debate.  His  sphere  of  influence  lay  in  the 
committee  room,  in  his  faithful  vote  for  what  he  deemed  wisest 


74          Address  of  Mr.  Perkins,  of  California,  on  the 

and  best  for  his  constituency  and  his  country,  in  the  weight 
attaching  to  his  large  experience  and  eminent  public  services, 
and  his  confidential  relations  with  the  executive  branch  of  the 
Government.  His  party  loyaltj'  was  never  doubted,  even 
when  he  ventured  to  differ  with  it  in  matters  of  financial  or 
political  administration.  His  memory  can  not  fail  to  be  cher 
ished  by  all  his  colleagues  who  recall  his  genial,  manly  nature, 
who  partook  of  his  generous  hospitality,  or  were  honored  by 
his  friendship. 

Possessed  of  a  colossal  private  fortune,  surrounded  with 
affectionate  devotion  in  his  home,  enjoying  the  highest  honors 
his  State  could  confer  upon  him,  with  "troops  of  friends  and 
the  world's  applause,"  surely  no  mortal  could  be  more  happily 
and  enviably  circumstanced.  But  in  the  inscrutable  counsels 
of  the  Divine  power  which  rules  over  the  fortunes  of  mankind 
it  was  ordained  that  LELAND  STANFORD,  at  the  height  of  his 
prosperity,  should  know  the  deepest  grief  that  can  befall  a  man, 
and  bear  his  full  part  of  the  world's  common  sorrow  which 
afflicts  the  race.  In  1884  the  awful  shadow  of  death  fell  upon 
the  home  of  Senator  STANFORD,  and  his  only  child,  a  youth 
remarkable  for  his  personal  attractiveness  and  lovable  disposi 
tion  and  the  rare  promise  of  his  mind  and  character,  was  sud 
denly  stricken  down  in  death.  It  was  a  terrible  blow  for  the 
bereaved  parents,  and  those  who  knew  Senator  STANFORD  best 
tell  us  that  he  never  recovered  from  it.  It  was,  however, 
characteristic  of  the  noble  nature  of  the  man  that  his  profound 
disappointment  and  sorrow  did  not  degenerate,  as  is  so  often 
the  case,  into  a  selfish  withdrawal  from  the  world,  or  harden 
his  heart  against  his  fellows.  It  rather  intensified  his  sympa 
thy  for  all  who  suffered  distress  or  need.  This  is  touchingly 
expressed  in  what  he  said  of  the  purpose  of  his  great  educa 
tional  schemes:  "The  children  of  California  shall  be  our  chil 
dren."  "It  is  our  hope  to  found  a  university  where  all  may 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  75 

have  a  chauce  to  secure  au  education  such  as  we  intended  our 
sou  should  have."  In  accordance  with  this  generous  intention, 
Senator  STANFORD,  together  with  his  wife,  the  worthy  confi 
dant  of  his  purposes,  conceived  the  noble  plan  of  founding  at 
his  splendid  seat  at  Palo  Alto  a  great  university  of  learning. 
This  institution  was  to  be  both  an  enduring  monument  to  the 
genius  and  virtues  of  his  beloved  son,  who,  indeed,  had  origin 
ally  suggested  such  a  disposition  of  much  of  his  father's  wealth ; 
it  was  also  designed  as  an  expression  of  human  affection  toward 
his  fellow-men.  The  underlying  principle  of  the  Lelaiid 
Stanford  Junior  University  is  a  union,  so  far  as  may  be  pos 
sible,  of  the  classical  and  traditional  methods  of  education 
with  those  new  conceptions  of  the  dignity  of  the  mechanic 
arts,  the  importance  of  modern  and  physical  science  and  man 
ual-labor  training  which  are  leading  features  in  the  education 
of  our  day.  Senator  STANFORD  sought  to  combine  in  his  new 
institution  theoretical  instruction  with  practical  training,  the 
study  of  the  applied  sciences  and  arts  simultaneously  with 
pure  learning  and  the  humanities.  The  consummation  of  this 
great  scheme  of  benevolence  Senator  STANFORD  did  not  defer 
till  after  his  death,  but  rather  became  the  executor  of  his  own 
estate  while  living.  He  set  about  the  work  himself  at  once. 
On  the  14th  of  November,  1885,  the  grant  of  endowment  was 
publicly  made  by  which  his  first  gift  of  $5,000,000  was  secured 
to  the  new  institution.  With  characteristic  energy  the  enter 
prise  was  forwarded.  As  by  magic  there  arose  in  the  lovely 
valley,  sheltered  by  the  green  foothills  of  the  Coast  Eauge, 
the  great  stone  quadrangles  of  the  university.  Already  in  the 
fall  of  1891  the  courses  of  instruction  began.  During  the  past 
two  years  nearly  1,500  eager  students  have  made  the  lofty 
cloisters  reverberate  with  the  hum  of  their  cheerful  industry 
and  the  effervescence  of  their  youthful  spirits.  The  libra 
ries  and  the  museums  are  filled  with  ardent  seekers  for  the 


76          Address  of  Mr,  Perkins,  of  California,  on  the 

stored  knowledge  of  the  world,  the  laboratories  and  work 
shops  resound  with  the  clatter  of  machinery  and  the  practice 
of  the  applied  sciences  and  arts.  Xot  only  from  California 
and  her  sister  States,  but  from  eastern  communities,  from 
Mexico  and  the  South  American  Eepublics,  and  from  the  isles 
and  continents  of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  the  flow  of  students  is 
steadily  setting  in,  and  the  university  seems  destined  to  become 
a  medium  for  uniting  both  Occident  and  Orient  in  the  bonds 
of  human  culture  and  brotherhood. 

Senator  STANFORD  was  spared  to  be  present  at  two  of  the 
commencements  of  the  school  he  had  founded,  the  central 
object,  with  his  honored  wife,  of  the  reverence  and  gratitude 
of  the  great  assembly.  The  contemplation  of  the  results  of 
their  public  spirit  and  generosity  and  the  affectionate  homage 
they  received  from  their  fellow- men  must  have  afforded  them 
a  most  exalted  form  of  pleasure  and  made  their  last  days 
together  on  earth  full  of  peace  and  blessing.  Senator 
STANFORD  appreciated  fully  that,  to  quote  his  own  words, 
"A.u  institution  of  learning,  however  broad  its  plans  and  noble 
its  purposes,  must  be  a  growth  and  not  a  creation."  He  made 
no  secret  of  his  expectations,  however,  that  in  the  course  of 
time  the  income  from  his  completed  endowment  would  reach  a 
million  dollars  annually,  and  suffice  for  the  free  instruction  of 
ten  thousand  students.  This  would  make  it  by  far  the  largest 
gift  ever  made  to  science  by  an  individual  in  human  history. 
It  will  not  be  out  of  place,  surely,  for  me  to  solicit  the  sym 
pathy  and  good  will  of  Senators  for  the  admirable  lady  who  is 
charged  with  the  sole  and  unrestricted  responsibility  of  carry 
ing  out  this  great  scheme  of  human  beneficence. 

My  tribute  would  be  sadly  incomplete  if  it  did  not  include  in 
its  brief  survey  some  recognition  of  the  private  and  personal 
worth  of  the  man  it  commemorates.  The  strong  will  and  con 
tinuity  of  purpose;  the  large,  calm  judgment;  the  statesman 


Life  and  Character  of '  Lei  and  Stanford.  77 

like  sagacity  and  executive  force  of  LELAND  STANFORD  have 
perhaps  been  sufficiently  set  forth  in  what  others  and  I  have 
already  said  concerning  him.  But  there  were  gentler,  more 
humane  traits  in  him  that  well  deserve  to  be  remembered.  In 
private  intercourse  he  was  genial  and  kindly  and  the  soul  of 
hospitality.  His  innate  chivalry  of  nature  was  displayed  in 
his  polite  deference  to  women  and  high  considerations  for 
them.  He  was  a  sincere  believer  in  the  political  enfranchise 
ment  as  well  as  equal  civil  and  business  rights  of  women. 
His  university  at  Palo  Alto  is  open  to  both  sexes  alike.  It 
is  a  crowning  touch  of  this  chivalric  spirit  that  in  all  his 
public  beneficence  he  linked  his  wife's  name  with  his  own, 
and,  dying,  left  his  vast  fortune  to  her  sole  disposal.  His 
quick  sympathies  were  revealed  not  only  by  his  loyal  friend 
ship  and  numberless  deeds  of  kindness,  but  in  the  love  he 
bore  the  animal  kingdom.  On  his  great  ranches  thousands 
of  noble  horses  found  in  him  a  gentle  master.  His  great 
mastiffs  at  Palo  Alto  miss  to-day  the  kindly  touch  of  that 
master's  hand.  He  loved  the  very  trees  at  his  country  seat, 
and  had  them  shore  up  the  decayed  and  feeble  limbs  that 
threatened  to  fall.  His  earthly  successes  were  due  to  many 
fortuitous  circumstances  in  his  career  and  character,  but  his 
victories  over  his  fellow-men  were  won  through  the  goodness 
of  his  heart.  The  self-sufficiency  and  cynicism  which  so  often 
attend  wealth  and  power  he  never  knew.  He  always  believed 
in  human  nature  and  trusted  the  people;  for,  as  he  said,  "the 
majority  of  men  desire  to  do  right." 

Finally,  sir,  I  may  be  permitted  to  say  that  all  his  moral 
nature  was  based  on  profound  religious  convictions.  While 
making  no  ostentatious  professions  of  religion,  and  not  a 
member  of  any  church,  his  mind,  liberalized  by  the  reading  of 
modern  science  and  philosophy,  yejt  clung  to  the  primal  truths 
of  Christ's  teaching — God,  virtue,  and  immortality.  In  the 


78  Address  of  Mr.  Perkins,  of  California. 

charter  of  the  new  university  he  prohibits  sectarian  instruc 
tion,  but  requires  the  teaching  of  "the  immortality  of  the  soul, 
the  existence  of  an  all- wise  and  beneficent  Creator,  and  that 
obedience  to  His  laws  is  the  highest  duty  of  man."  After  his 
son's  death  his  thoughts  turned  with  increasing  solemnity  to 
contemplate  the  vast  issues  of  the  eternal  life. 

Like  ancient  Cato,  as  reported  by  Cicero,  he  might  have  said : 

Glorious  clay,  when  I  shall  remove  from  this  confused  crowd  to  join  the 
divine  assembly  of  souls !  For  I  shall  go  not  only  to  meet  great  men,  but 
also  my  own  son  Cato.  His  spirit,  looking  back  upon  me,  departed  to  that 
place  whither  he  knew  that  I  should  soon  come,  and  he  has  never  deserted 
me. 

If  I  have  borne  his  loss  with  courage,  it  is  because  I  consoled  myself  with 
the  thought  that  our  separation  would  not  be  for  long. 

In  whichever  of  its  many  aspects  we  contemplate  the  life  of 
LELAND  STANFORD,  as  a  successful  and  honorable  merchant, 
as  a  great  chief  of  industry,  as  a  patriotic  war  governor,  as  a 
Senator  of  the  United  States,  as  a  wise  and  generous  phil 
anthropist,  he  reveals  himself  as  a  unique  and  commanding 
figure  in  our  country's  history  and  a  noble  type  of  American 
manhood. 

Peace  to  his  ashes  and  honor  to  his  memory ! 

Mr.  President,  as  a  mark  of  respect  to  the  memory  of 
LELAND  STANFORD,  who  died  while  a  Senator  of  the  United 
States,  I  move  that  the  Senate  do  now  adjourn. 

The  motion  was  unanimously  agreed  to;  and  (at  5  o'clock  and 
25  minutes  p.  m.)  the  Senate  adjourned  until  Monday,  Septem 
ber  18,  1893,  at  12  o'clock  m. 


PROCEEDINGS  IN  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES. 


MONDAY,  February  12,  1894. 

Mr.  LOUD.  If  there  be  no  further  business  before  the  House, 
I  ask  unanimous  consent  that  we  now  proceed  with  the  special 
order. 

There  was  no  objection,  and  it  was  so  ordered. 

The  SPEAKER.  The  Clerk  will  report  the  special  order. 

The  Clerk  read  as  follows: 

Resolved,  That  the  House  has  heard  with  profound  sorrow  the  announce 
ment  of  the  death  of  Hon.  LELAND  STANFORD,  late  a  Senator  from  the 
State  of  California. 

Resolved,  That  the  business  of  the  House  be  now  suspended  in  order 
that  fitting  tribute  be  paid  to  his  memory. 

Resolved,  That  as  an  additional  mark  of  respect  the  House,  at  the  con 
clusion  of  the  ceremonies,  do  adjourn. 

The  resolutions  were  adopted  unanimously. 

79 


EULOGIES. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  TRACEY,  OF  NEW  YORK, 

Mr.  SPEAKER  :  Last  September  the  members  of  the  Senate 
of  the  United  States  gave  expression  to  their  feeling  of  pro 
found  regret  at  the  loss  of  their  colleague,  the  Hon.  LELAND 
STANFORD,  and  at  the  same  time  expressed  in  the  strongest 
terms  their  admiration  of  his  qualities  as  a  statesman  and  his 
generosity  as  a  man,  and  their  high  appreciation  of  the  great 
services  he  had  rendered  to  his  adopted  State  of  California  as 
well  as  the  nation  at  large.  Gentlemen  who  will  follow  me  on 
this  occasion,  and  who  were  intimately  acquainted  with  him 
in  his  lifetime,  will  further  enlarge  upon  these  admirable  char 
acteristics  of  the  lamented  Senator. 

It  is  my  intention  not  to  make  a  formal  address,  but  simply 
to  call  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  late  Senator  STANFORD 
was  a  native  of  the  town  of  Wutervliet,  in  the  county  of  Albany, 
the  district  which  I  have  the  honor  to  represent  here.  Although 
in  early  life  he  left  the  community  in  which  lie  had  been  born 
and  went  to  the  West,  finally  settling  in  the  great  Pacific  State 
which  he  afterwards  represented  in  the  Senate,  it  was  always  a 
matter  of  special  pride  to  the  people  of  his  native  county  that 
his  career  was  so  successful,  and  this  pride  was  enhanced  by 
the  fact  that,  although  his  later  home  was  in  so  distant  a  part 
of  the  Union,  he  never  lost  interest  in  his  native  place. 

From  time  to  time  he  came  to  visit  his  birthplace,  and  upon 
those  occasions  that  generosity  which  was  so  prominent  a  trait 
80 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  81 

in  his  character  was  freely  manifested  for  the  relief  of  those  who 
were  iu  distress,  and  when  at  last  he  was  finally  taken  from  us 
he  remembered  in  the  most  munificent  manner  his  kinspeople 
who  still  lived  at  the  old  home,  and  there,  as  well  as  elsewhere, 
institutions  of  benevolence  and  charity  were  made  the  benefi 
ciaries  of  his  great  prosperity.  Mr.  Speaker,  I  will  not  occupy 
further  time  now,  but  will  give  way  to  my  colleagues  who  have 
prepared  more  formal  eulogies. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  HILBORN,  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

Mr.  SPEAKER  :  The  career  of  LELAND  STANFORD  illustrates 
the  possibilities  open  to  the  American  youth  under  our  insti 
tutions.  By  his  unaided  exertions  he  was  able  to  link  his 
name  inseparably  with  one  of  the  greatest  enterprises  of 
modern  times,  to  acquire  fabulous  wealth,  to  become  governor 
of  a  sovereign  State,  a  Senator  of  the  United  States,  and  the 
founder  of  an  educational  institution  the  scope  of  which  has 
challenged  the  admiration  of  the  world.  His  career  was  cer 
tainly  one  of  the  most  remarkable  and  unique  in  our  history. 
It  was  romance  in  real  life. 

While  the  great  railroad  which  spans  this  continent  exists 
he  will  need  no  other  monument;  as  long  as  the  university 
which  he  founded  continues  to  afford  the  youth  of  the  country 
the  facilities  for  education  according  to  his  magnificent  plan, 
his  name  will  not  be  forgotten. 

My  intimate  personal  acquaintance  with  Senator  STANFORD 
began  with  my  Congressional  service  in  the  second  session  of 
the  Fifty-second  Congress.  Up  to  that  time  I  had  known  him 
only  casually.  The  discharge  of  our  official  duties  brought 
us  much  together,  and  our  acquaintance  ripened  into  a  friend- 
S.  Mis.  122 G 


82          Address  of  Mr.  Hilborn,  of  California,  on  the 

ship  which  is  now  to  me  a  pleasant  memory.  He  was  a  most 
agreeable  companion  and  a  model  host. 

I  found  him  always  kindly  and  considerate  of  the  feelings 
of  others.  He  was  entirely  free  from  that  offensive  assertive- 
ness  which  is  so  often  found  among  persons  possessed  of  great 
wealth  or  who  have  long  held  positions  of  command.  With 
strong  convictions,  he  never  offensively  obtruded  them  upon 
others.  I  never  heard  LELAND  STANFORD  speak  ill  of  any 
human  being.  His  charity  seemed  to  cover  everybody. 

During  the  period  mentioned  his  infirmities  were  so  serious 
as  to  practically  confine  him  to  his  home,  but  he  lost  none  of 
his  interest  in  public  affairs,  and  it  greatly  pleased  him  to  have 
the  Kepresentatives  from  California  meet  under  his  roof  to 
transact  the  business  pertaining  to  his  State,  that  he  might 
lend  a  helping  hand.  And  there  I  saw  something  of  his  charm 
ing  home  life.  Between  him  and  his  estimable  wife  there  was 
a  manifest  companionship  of  thought  and  action. 

The  loss  of  their  son  seemed  to  have  chastened  their  lives 
and  raised  them  up  to  a  higher  plane  from  which  they  saw  with 
a  clearer  vision  their  duties  to  mankind  and  to  their  God.  No 
one  could  be  insensible  to  the  elevating  influence  of  that  house 
hold,  and  no  one  who  has  felt  it  can  ever  forget  it. 

The  portrait  of  their  only  son,  who  had  passed  away,  was 
placed  conspicuously  in  their  favorite  room  and  seemed  to 
complete  the  family  group.  Certain  it  is  that  he  was  always 
present  in  their  thoughts. 

While  not  a  member  of  any  church  organization,  LELAND 
STANFORD  loved  to  talk  on  religious  subjects.  He  firmly 
believed  in  the  immortality  of  the  soul  and  that  spirits  which 
were  kindred  here  would  be  united  beyond  the  grave.  The 
momentous  question  which  has  been  asked  by  sages  and  phi 
losophers  over  and  over,  as  the  ages  have  rolled  by,  "If  a 
man  die  shall  he  live  again?"  he  had  answered,  and  in  his  mind 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  83 

there  remained  no  lingering  doubt.     He  looked  upon  death 
with  the  eyes  of  a  philosopher  and  without  fear  or  dread. 

LELAND  STANFORD  was  a  notable  man  before  he  was  rich. 
He  had  made  for  himself  a  name  while  he  was  yet  compara 
tively  poor.  He  was  governor  of  a  great  State,  one  of  the 
molders  of  the  sentiment  of  its  people  in  a  great  crisis,  and 
a  leader  in  his  party  before  he  had  acquired  great  wealth. 
He  was  a  marked  man  anywhere.  Wherever  he  went  his 
bearing  challenged  attention,  suggested  power,  and  commanded 
admiration.  Physically  he  was  a  typical  American  —  strong, 
rugged,  and  indomitable.  Like  Saul,  towering  above  his 
brethren,  he  filled  the  full  measure  of  an  ideal  leader  among 
the  Argonauts  of  California.  To  be  a  leader  among  such  men 
demanded  extraordinary  qualities. 

The  Argonauts  of  California  were  the  most  superb  body  of 
men  who  ever  founded  a  state.  They  were  picked  men  selected 
i'rom  the  whole  world.  When  the  news  flashed  over  the  civil 
ized  world  that  there  was  a  place  called  California,  where  the 
rivers  were  running  down  to  the  sea  over  a  sheen  of  gold  and 
the  mountains  were  studded  with  the  precious  metal,  there 
were  men  in  all  parts  of  the  world  —  adventurous  spirits  — 
who  at  once  resolved  to  go  there. 

The  question  where  this  mysterious  country  was  —  for  it  was 
not  laid  down  on  the  maps  —  or  how  they  were  to  get  there 
appalled  them  not.  They  knew  it  was  somewhere  on  the  face 
of  the  earth  and  man  had  been  there,  and  that  was  enough  — 
for  what  man  could  do  they  could  do.  The  men  who  made 
this  resolve  had  courage,  brains,  health,  and  youth.  There 
never  was  such  an  aggregation  of  humanity  on  the  face  of  the 
earth  as  that  which  was  gathered  together  around  the  Bay  of 
San  Francisco  in  1848  and  1849,  and  there  never  will  be  again. 

The  lame,  the  halt,  and  the  blind  were  not  there.  They 
were  young  men  with  the  world  before  them,  full  of  hope  and 


84          Address  of  Mr.  Hilborn,  of  California,  on  the 

ambition,  and  blessed  with  health,  brains,  and  energy.  These 
men  have  planted  there  a  civilization  which  is  unique  and 
interesting.  These  were  the  men  among  whom  LELAND 
STANFORD  became  a  leader. 

Mr.  STANFORD,  with  an  innate  love  of  liberty,  a  keen  sense 
of  justice,  and  a  humanity  which  embraced  the  whole  human 
family,  naturally  detested  slavery,  and  long  before  the  com 
mencement  of  the  civil  war  we  find  him  with  that  small  but 
heroic  band  who  formed  the  Republican  party  in  California. 

It  required  courage  then  to  be  a  Republican  in  that  State. 
From  the  very  birth  of  the  party  he  was  one  of  its  leaders. 
In  1857  he  was  its  candidate  for  State  treasurer  and  in  1850 
its  candidate  for  governor.  He  was  again  candidate  for  gov 
ernor  in  1861,  and  was  elected,  leading  his  ticket  by  about 
6,000  votes.  The  war  of  the  rebellion  was  then  in  progress 
and  his  position  was  a  most  trying  one,  but  his  administration 
was  so  wise  and  conservative  that  he  deservedly  took  high 
rank  among  that  glorious  band  of  war  governors  whom  Prov 
idence  seemed  to  have  raised  up  for  the  occasion. 

At  the  close  of  his  term  the  legislature  bestowed  upon  him 
the  unusual  compliment  of  a  concurrent  resolution  passed  by 
a  unanimous  vote  of  all  parties,  in  which  it  was — 

Resolved  by  the  assembly  (the  senate  concurring),  That  the  thanks  of  the 
people  of  California  are  merited  by  and  are  hereby  tendered  to  LKLAXD 
STAMFORD  for  the  able,  upright,  and  faithful  manner  in  which  he  has  dis 
charged  the  duties  of  governor  of  the  State  of  California  for  the  past  two 
years. 

He  declined  a  reelection  that  he  might  devote  himself  to  the 
great  work  of  his  life  —  the  construction  of  the  transconti 
nental  railroad.  To  the  statesmen  and  patriots  of  that  period 
the  building  of  a  railroad  across  the  continent  was  something 
more  than  a  mere  business  enterprise  —  it  was  part  of  a  grand 
scheme  to  preserve  the  integrity  of  this  Union. 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  85 

The  object  to  be  accomplished  by  the  construction  of  this 
road  was  to  bind  the  East  and  the  West  together  with  bands 
of  steel.  Without  that  purpose  it  would  not  have  been  built 
at  that  time.  The  isolation  of  the  States  on  the  Pacific  and 
their  defenseless  condition  caused  much  solicitude  during  the 
war  of  the  rebellion.  They  could  only  be  reached  by  a  cir 
cuitous  ocean  route.  The  patriotic  purpose  was  to  devise 
means  to  destroy  this  isolation,  to  make  communication  more 
direct  and  swift,  and  to  bring  that  portion  of  our  country  in 
closer  touch  with  the  older  States. 

During  the  civil  war  the  gold  of  California  was  indispensa 
ble  to  meet  our  obligations  abroad ;  indeed  it  was  the  lifeblood 
of  our  credit.  Yet  the  ships  which  bore  this  doubly  precious 
treasure,  more  richly  laden  than  the  famous  galleons  «of 
romance,  ran  the  gauntlet  of  hostile  cruisers  which  infested 
the  two  oceans  they  crossed.  Arms  and  munitions  of  war  for 
the  protection  of  our  citizens  on  the  Western  Slope  could  only 
reach  them  by  a  long  voyage  around  the  Horn. 

A  railroad  built  on  American  soil  from  the  Atlantic  to  the 
Pacific  was  as  necessary  as  any  military  road  constructed  dur 
ing  the  war  for  the  preservation  of  the  Union ;  and  the  same 
patriotic  spirit  which  sanctioned  the  expenditure  of  money  for 
the  one  prompted  and  promoted  the  construction  of  the  other. 

The  project  of  building  a  railroad  which  would  cross  two 
mountain  ranges  and  a  desert  plain  was  a  bold  and  audacious 
one,  and  would  have  appalled  more  timid  men.  But  LELAND 
STANFORD  and  his  associates  grappled  with  the  enterprise, 
bearing  with  patience  the  jeers  of  the  multitude,  and  brought 
it  to  a  successful  conclusion. 

One  strong  characteristic  of  Senator  STANFORD  was  his  love 
for  dumb  animals,  especially  the  horse.  Lovers  of  that  noble 
animal  all  over  the  world  mourn  his  death. 

The  last  time  I   saw  him   alive  was  just  before  the  final 


86          Address  of  Mr,  Hilborn,  of  California,  on  the 

adjournment  of  the  Fifty -second  Congress  and  the  close  of  the 
Harrison  administration.  He  was  reminded  that  a  matter  of 
great  importance  to  one  of  bis  constituents  Avas  pending  in  one 
of  the  Departments  which  he  had  promised  to  attend  to,  but 
had  not.  It  was  one  of  the  most  inclement  days  of  that  mem 
orable  winter.  There  was  a  blinding  and  violent  snowstorm 
abroad.  But  without  a  moment's  hesitation  he  ordered  his  car 
riage,  went  to  the  Department,  and  fulfilled  his  promise.  No 
special  obligation  rested  upon  him  to  make  this  sacrifice,  but 
a  friend  was  sorely  in  need  of  assistance  which  he  alone  could 
give. 

The  day  of  his  funeral  was  a  memorable  one  in  the  annals  of 
our  State.  On  that  bright  June  day,  under  that  soft  Califor 
nia  sky,  in  the  lovely  valley  which  he  had  chosen  for  his  home, 
in  sight  of  the  already  famous  university  which  he  had  estab 
lished,  we  laid  him  to  rest.  No  invitations  were  issued,  no 
efforts  were  made  to  bring  out  a  concourse  of  people,  but  the 
simple  announcement  that  LELAND  STANFORD  was  dead  and 
that  his  funeral  would  take  place  on  the  24th  of  June  at  Palo 
Alto  brought  together  the  most  notable  body  of  people  ever 
assembled  on  such  an  occasion  in  California. 

From  every  part  of  the  State  came  the  men  who  had  laid  the 
foundation  of  our  Commonwealth  and  assisted  in  making  its 
history;  men  who  projected  the  great  enterprises  for  the  devel 
opment  of  the  State ;  people  interested  in  education,  literature, 
and  art  were  there;  the  pioneers  of  the  Republican  party  were 
there;  men  who  had  grown  gray  in  the  service  of  the  railroad 
company  which  he  directed  were  there  with  tributes  of  affec 
tion;  and  thousands  were  there  who  mourned  the  death  of  a 
benefactor. 

Thus  went  to  rest  one  of  the  most  conspicuous  men  of  our 
times  —  merchant,  governor,  Senator,  continental  railway 
pioneer,  and  founder  of  a  great  university. 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  87 

Whatever  may  have  beeii  his  share  of  the  weaknesses  com 
mon  to  our  human  nature,  they  are  lost  sight  of  in  the  good  he 
accomplished,  the  result  of  which  will  long  survive  him. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  SIBLEY.,  OF  PENNSYLVANIA. 

Mr.  SPEAKER:  For  several  years  during  the  latter  portion 
of  his  life  I  had  the  honor  and  the  pleasure  of  the  close  personal 
friendship  of  Hon.  LELAND  STANFORD.  Under  the  shade 
of  a  wide-spreading  oak  in  a  cloudless  land,  where  nature 
seems  to  bestow  her  riches  and  rarest  treasures  in  prodigal 
profusion,  it  was  given  me  to  listen  to  and  learn  from  this 
truly  marvelous  man.  Some  similarity  in  tastes,  a  mutual 
love  for  the  soil,  its  products,  its  capabilities  for  support  of 
human  life,  a  common  admiration  for  the  noblest  of  the  animal 
kingdom,  and  the  enthusiasm  that  pertains  to  one  a  genera 
tion  younger,  led  him  to  recount  to  me  his  past,  to  speak  freely 
of  the  present,  and  on  rare  occasions  to  explore  the  future. 
I  never  met  this  man  for  an  hour  that  I  did  not  have  on  part 
ing  a  higher  appreciation  of  his  wisdom,  a  greater  respect  for 
his  opinions,  a  warmer  admiration  for  his  virtues,  greater  love 
for  his  nobility  of  character,  and  a  truer  sympathy  with  his 
aspirations. 

I  shall  not  dwell  upon  his  business  career,  but  in  passing 
recount  one  incident.  Looking  off  to  the  great  Sierra  Nevada 
range  rising  to  the  heavens  as  a  snow-white,  impenetrable 
barrier,  he  told  me  the  story  of  the  building  of  the  Central 
Pacific  road  over  their  might  y  summits.  He  told  me  how, 
with  three  other  men,  none  of  them  rich,  they  would  meet  at 
night  and  talk  about  the  necessity  of  something  faster  than 
a  pony  express  from  the  Missouri  River  to  the  Pacific,  and 
something  pleasanter  than  a  stage  coach  and  emigrant  trail j 


88        Address  of  Mr.  Sibley,  of  Pennsylvania,  on  the 

and  then  how  these  four  men,  whose  total  means  were  not 
adequate  to  build  one  single  mile  through  some  portions  of 
the  mountains,  determined  that  they  would  start  the  road 
and  demonstrate  to  the  world  the  possibility  of  a  railroad 
over  the  Sierras.  Friends  laughed  at  them,  even  jeered  at 
them;  entreated  of  them  not  to  risk  life's  earnings  in  so  haz 
ardous  an  enterprise.  He  told  me  of  the  trials  and  discour 
agements,  and  that  for  more  than  two  years  he  did  not  know 
whether  he  was  worth  millions  or  poorer  than  a  penniless 
beggar.  But  the  work  went  on  to  completion,  and  what  had 
been  a  dream  yesterday  was  an  accomplished  fact  to-day. 

The  building  of  the  Central  Pacific  Railroad  gives  the  clue 
to  the  whole  life  of  this  man,  whose  projects  were  so  grand  as 
to  inspire  doubts,  and  yet  when  tested  found  so  practical  as  to 
utterly  dispel  them.  He  had  faith  in  himself,  and,  what  is  so 
often  lacking  in  great  minds,  he  had  a  most  trustful  faith  in 
others. 

I  shall  not  dwell  upon  his  success  in  every  field  of  human 
effort  to  which  he  brought  his  master  mind,  not  among  the 
least  being  his  success  in  new  lines  of  breeding  and  develop 
ing  of  the  domesticated  animals  and  his  success  in  new  fields 
of  agricultural  experiments.  Rarely  has  keen  business  acumen 
been  so  closely  woven  in  one  life  with  generous  impulse,  ten 
der  emotion,  and  broad  human  sympathy. 

One  day  at  Palo  Alto  he  showed  me  the  beautiful  park  in 
the  center  of  which  had  been  started  the  foundations  of  a 
home  for  his  only  son,  who  had  died  some  three  years  before. 
He  told  me  of  the  boy's  character  and  his  ambitions  for  him ; 
and  then  we  went  together  to  the  tomb  of  the  boy,  and  he  told 
amid  tears  and  sobs  how  since  the  death  of  his  son  he  had 
adopted  and  taken  to  his  heart  and  love  every  friendless  boy 
and  girl  in  all  the  land;  and  that  so  far  as  his  means  afforded 
they  should  go  to  make  the  path  of  every  such  an  one 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  89 

smoother  and  brighter;  and  that  with  the  increase  in  values 
of  property  given  to  the  Leland  Stanford  Junior  University 
he  hoped  that  it  would  yet  be  able  to  feed,  clothe,  and  edu 
cate  all  the  poor  but  aspiring  youth  on  the  Pacific  Slope. 

I  shall  not  dwell  upon  his  public  and  his  private  charities 
and  the  zeal  with  wliich  his  wife  entered  into  every  plan  for 
the  amelioration  of  the  wretched ;  of  the  founding  of  mission 
and  orphan  schools  by  Mrs.  Stanford,  and  the  great  interest 
he  always  took  in  her  work  for  their  welfare. 

One  little  digression  here  in  point.  My  partner  and  myself 
had  purchased  a  young  colt  of  him,  for  which  we  paid  him 
$12,500.  He  took  out  his  check  book,  drew  two  checks  of 
$6,250  each,  and  sent  them  to  two  different  city  homes  for 
friendless  children,  and,  with  a  twinkle  in  his  eye  and  broadly 
beaming  benevolence  in  his  features,  said:  "Electric  Bell 
ought  to  make  a  great  horse;  he  starts  in  making  so  many 
people  happy  in  the  very  beginning  of  his  life." 

I  am  not  familiar  with  his  early  life,  but  know  that  in  his 
latter  years  the  aim  and  end  of  his  existence  was  for  the  wel 
fare  and  happiness  of  others.  The  death  of  his  son  seemed  to 
have  changed  the  whole  channel  of  human  existence  with  him. 
It  was  the  black  frost  which  opened  up  the  rough  burr  and 
showed  the  rich  fruit  within. 

Shall  I  say  he  failed  to  discern  the  good  outside  his  own 
party?  No;  he  ever  placed  patriotism  above  partyism ;  public 
weal  above  personal  advantage.  He  stood  with  the  people  in 
their  demands  for  free  silver  coinage.  He  believed  in  America 
and  her  institutions,  and  during  his  last  visit  in  the  East 
stated  his  individual  belief  that  within  ten  years,  through  the 
growth  of  the  beet-sugar  industry,  America  would  produce 
more  sugar  than  would  be  needed  for  her  own  people,  and 
save  to  the  nation  in  a  single  item  more  than  one  hundred 
millions  annually. 


90        Address  of  Mr.  Sibley,  of  Pennsylvania,  on  the 

A  man  of  such  resources,  understanding  finance  and  know 
ing  those  who  controlled  the  finances  of  the  nation,  lie  was 
keenly  alive  to  the  dangers  threatening  the  people.  .  He  gave 
his  best  powers  of  thought  to  the  evolution  of  a  system  which 
should  emancipate  the  nation's  producers  from  the  slavery  of 
universal  debt  and  financial  fetters.  He  saw  that  a  nation's 
greatness  rested  not  upon  her  strong  towers,  her  mighty 
fortresses,  frowning  cannon,  and  enginery  of  war,  but  saw 
with  keenest  vision  that  the  safety  of  the  state  lay  in  the 
prosperity  of  a  free  and  contented  people,  whose  strong  right 
arms,  hopeful  hearts,  and  happy  homes  should  ever  prove  the 
strongest  bulwarks  of  liberty.  The  public  press  with  a  laugh 
and  the  aristocracy  of  finance  with  a  jeer  set  the  seal  of 
disapproval  upon  his  latest  and  mightiest  conception  for 
American  progress  and  welfare. 

Mr.  Speaker,  I  have  stood  among  the  majestic  Alps  before 
the  break  of  day.  The  moon  had  long  since  sunk  to  rest  and 
darkness  shrouded  earth  with  sable  curtains  so  thick  that  all 
nature  seemed  wrapped  in  death's  dark  folds.  Of  a  sudden, 
in  the  west,  out  of  the  blackness,  appeared  a  glorious  vision. 
The  topmost  peak  of  a  majestic  mountain  had  caught  the  first 
gleams  of  the  god  of  day  and  wrapped  its  snowy  head  with  a 
halo  of  golden  glory.  Though  still  dark  in  the  valley,  this 
towering  peak  was  illumined.  The  light  and  glory  still 
descended.  The  head  of  a  companion  peak  was  irradiated 
with  another  and  marvelous  transformation.  Peak  after  peak, 
summit  after  summit,  first  the  greater  and  then  the  less, 
caught  the  light  until  from  the  dark  valley  the  whole  range 
was  so  transplendent  they  seemed  like  long  rows  of  white  and 
glittering  angel  messengers  with  the  halo  of  God's  ineffable 
glory  crowning  their  brows,  proclaiming  the  birth  of  a  new 
day.  And  soon  the  promise  was  fulfilled,  even  to  those  upon 
the  plain.  The  highest  peaks  had  caught  but  a  trifie  in 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  91 

advance  the  warm  kisses  and  golden  promises  of  the  full 
day. 

And  so,  Mr.  Speaker,  there  are  men  who  sometimes  stand 
so  high  upon  the  mountains  of  truth  that  overlooking  inter 
vening  valleys,  lesser  altitudes,  and  minor  ranges  which 
obstruct  the  common  vision,  catch  in  advance  of  others  the 
promise  of  the  sun-crowned  day.  Shall  we  who  stand  in  the 
valley  doubt  him  who  standeth  on  the  hill  ?  Shall  they  who 
stand  in  the  darkness  doubt  those  whose  faces  have  caught 
the  light? 

Great  minds  have  seen  the  promise  of  the  brighter  day  to 
dawn.  To  some  men  it  has  been  given  to  stand  upon  the 
Mount  of  Transfiguration,  and  there  are  those  who  would  fain 
even  build  present  tabernacles  thereon.  Such  was  our  friend. 
He  had  risen  out  of  the  valley  of  self,  and  from  his  height,  with 
clearness  of  perception,  saw  the  coming  of  a  new  and  brighter 
day.  He  spoke  of  a  new  light,  and  from  his  own  form  reflected 
its  glory. 

Such  earnest  natures  are  the  fiery  pith, 
The  concrete  nucleus  'round  which  systems  grow; 

Mass  after  mass  becomes  inspired  therewith, 
And  whirls  impregnate  with  the  central  glow. 

Mr.  Speaker,  1  have  stood  in  earth's  grandest  cathedrals 
where  sleep  the  mighty  dead.  In  Westminster  Abbey  the 
ashes  of  Britain's  warrior  kings  beneath  the  fretted  tracery 
securely  rest,  moved  not  by  the  pealing  tones  or  resounding 
echoes  of  the  Minster  organ,  nor  awakened  by  the  harmony  of 
the  sweet-voiced  choir.  For  their  chiefest  virtues  one  single 
slab  of  marble  will  suffice.  Beneath  the  mighty  dome  of  St. 
Paul's  rests  a  Wellington,  and  as  we  view  the  spot  where  all 
held  by  earth  remains  no  sighs  escape,  no  tears  fall.  Upon 
the  borders  of  the  Seine,  under  the  golden  dome  of  the  Chapel 
des  Invalides,  I  have  looked  with  others  upon  the  porphyry 
and  granite  sarcophagus  which  hides  the  ashes  of  Xapoleon. 


92        Address  of  Mr.  Sibley,  of  Pennsylvania^  on  the 

About  the  tomb  are  inscribed  the  names  of  his  mightiest  bat 
tles;  captive  flags  droop  from  circling  dome;  thousands  wend 
their  way  and  shall  to  view  the  spot  where  sleeps  world's 
wantonest  warrior.  You  feel  no  tear  drops  start,  no  kindlier 
impulses  waken,  but  you  feel  a  vague,  oppressive  dread  and 
awe.  You  view  it  as  you  might  the  ruins  of  some  majestic 
heathen  temple  where  bestial  orgies  or  human  sacrifice  had 
long  since  held  sway. 

.  Leaving  the  East  of  the  Old  World  and  the  New,  in  a 
sunny  valley  guarded  by  the  peaks  of  the  Sierra  Madres  and 
laved  by  the  warm  waters  of  the  Pacific,  stands  a  mausoleum 
which  bears  the  name  of  STANFORD.  It  tells  of  no  mighty 
battles  wherein  men  gave  their  blood  to  glut  ambition;  it 
tells  of  no  devastated  nations;  no  divided  families;  no 
destroying  conquests.  It  bears  only  three  names  —  the  names 
of  LELAND  STANFORD,  Leland  Stanford,  jr.,  and  Jane  E. 
Stanford.  Two  of  the  three  have  passed  through  its  portal, 
and  the  other  waits  only  to  round  out  and  perfect  the  work 
so  happily  begun  by  all.  No  noonday  beat  of  drum,  no 
pealing  organ,  no  surpliced  choir  is  heard. 

The  footfall  of  the  animals  he  loved  in  life,  the  carol  of  the 
birds,  and  the  hum  of  happy  industry  alone  awake  the  echoes. 
And  yet  this  tomb  stands  upon  consecrated  ground;  upon  an 
estate  dedicated  to  the  happiness  and  welfare  of  American 
manhood  and  womanhood.  No  groined  arches  hide  the  sun 
by  day  or  the  stars  by  night,  and  yet,  as  I  measure  it,  here 
reposes  royalty  in  its  long,  last  sleep.  Truly,  if  there  be  any 
attributes  of  kingship  which  rule  the  realm  of  virtues,  this  man 
was  most  of  all  a  king.  He  was  born  to  conquer  and  to  rule. 
His  conquests  cost  no  tears,  made  no  slaves,  marred  no  lands. 
He  conquered  the  obstacles  of  nature,  leveled  mountains,  filled 
valleys,  annihilated  distances,  overcame  time,  watered  deserts, 
and  made  them  bloom.  He  conquered  greed  and  sordid  self 
and  made  all  his  own  the  portion  of  each  aspiring  youth  of  the 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  93 

land.  He  conquered  poverty  and  lack  of  opportunity  for 
thousands  living  and  thousands  yet  unborn.  He  saw  in  the 
form  of  every  friendless  boy  a  son,  and  learned  to  be  the 
grandest  ruler  because  he  learned  to  rule  his  own  spirit. 

Xear  his  tomb  stands  a  nobler  monument  than  yet  has  been 
erected  to  earth's  heroes;  a  university  so  broad  in  its  concep 
tions,  so  complete  in  its  details,  so  strongly  intrenched  in  all 
the  provisions  of  endowment,  so  lovingly  designed  for  human 
welfare,  that  it  stands  to-day  alone  and  unique  among  the 
creations  of  man.  You  say  he  is  dead,  and  I  say  he  has  just 
begun  to  live.  Job  says: 

There  is  hope  of  a  tree  if  it  be  cut  down,  that  it  will  sprout  again,  and 
that  the  tender  branch  thereof  shall  not  cease.  Though  the  root  thereof 
wax  old  in  the  earth  and  the  stock  thereof  die  in  the  ground,  yet  through 
the  scent  of  water  it  shall  bud  and  bring  forth  boughs  like  a  plant. 

Ah,  sir,  wh^n  some  men  die  they  show  such  works  founded 
that  they  have  but  set  in  motion  the  mighty  mechanism  of  life. 
Scientists  tell  us  that  if  we  throw  a  pebble  in  the  center  of  the 
ocean  that  not  one  atom  of  water  in  all  the  depths  but  shall  be 
stirred,  and  that  from  the  ocean  to  the  river,  from  river  to  riv 
ulet  and  rill,  even  to  every  fountain  source  in  all  the  world  its 
influence  shall  pervade.  And  so  with  such  a  life  thrown  into 
the  ocean  of  time  its  influence  shall  deepen  and  widen  with 
each  recurring  cycle  until  it  shall  touch  the  immeasurable 
depths,  reach  the  boundless  shores  of  eternity,  and  rise  to  the 
very  fountain  head  of  God's  ever-welling  springs  of  love. 
Though  the  pitcher  be  broken  and  the  water  spilled  upon  the 
parched  ground,  yet  the  mysterious  agency  of  the  rays  of  the 
midday  sun  shall  in  the  form  of  vapor  draw  it  all  again  toward 
itself,  and  thus  not  lost  but  returning  again  to  earth  to  bless 
the  fields,  fill  the  fountains,  and  cheer  the  heart  of  man.  And 
so  to  me  seems  the  life  of  such  a  man.  Though  we  say  dead 
and  swallowed  up  in  earth,  yet  the  spirit  drawn  by  the  invisi- 


94        Address  of  Mr.  Sibley,  of  Pennsylvania,  on  the 

ble  powers  of  Heaven  ascends,  and  shall  ascending  and  de 
scending,  as  the  angels  seen  by  Jacob  in  his  glorious  vision, 
ever  return  to  bless,  refilling  the  parched  fountains  of  human 
existence  through  never-ending  cycles. 

Mr.  Speaker,  no  good  life  is  ever  swallowed  up  in  death;  'tis 
merely  mooring  the  storm-tossed  craft  in  a  harbor  of  refuge. 

To  die  is  landing  on  some  silent  shore, 
Where  billows  never  break  nor  tempests  roar; 
Ere  well  we  feel  the  friendly  stroke,  'tis  o'er. 

And  what  is  this  that  we  term  death!  "Tis  but  a  prolonged 
and  unawakeued  dream.  Sleep  and  death  are  twin  sister 
angels,  refreshing  from  the  cares  and  toils  of  earth.  We  sleep 
and  dream.  We  close  our  eyes  in  sleep  and  death ;  we  exclude 
the  tumult  and  noise  of  the  day;  we  forget  its  sorrows,  banish 
its  petty  ambitions,  and  divest  ourselves  of  cankering  cares.  In 
sleep  we  dream,  and  only  in  our  dreams  do  we  meet  our  ideals 
of  waking  hours.  In  our  dreams  alone  have  we  built  grand 
castles,  whose  spires  tower  to  the  very  heavens.  In  our  dreams 
we  have  painted  a  world's  masterpiece.  In  our  dreams  we  have 
rivaled  all  of  earth's  artists;  have  sung  a  sweeter  song  than 
waking  poet  ever  breathed.  Twas  in  our  dreams  we  touched 
the  magic  chord  and  reached  the  rapturous  harmony  of  heaven. 
In  our  dreams  we  overcame  wicked  giants  and  destroyed 
devouring  dragons.  In  our  dreams,  untrammeled  by  earthly 
fetters,  the  mind  marched  master  of  the  realms  of  fancy  and 
of  thought.  In  our  dreams  all  knotty  problems  found  an  easy 
solvent,  and  day  doubts  dispelled  like  vanishing  mists.  In 
our  dreams  our  brother's  faults  were  forgotten,  and  we  saw 
alone  his  virtues,  glorious  and  resplendent  in  all  their  beauty. 
In  our  dreams  we  were  never  beaten  back,  overthrown,  nor 
recked  the  odds.  In  our  dreams  earth's  cross  became  a  crown ; 
unlimited  and  limitless  the  spirit  soared,  surmounted  every 
height,  overcame  every  obstacle,  and  when,  as  a  prisoner  who 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  95 

has  dreamed  of  home,  friends,  and  liberty,  came  the  rude 
awaking1,  and  we  found  the  old  surroundings  and  the  usual 
daily  burdens  to  be  borne,  who  has  not  said  that  only  when 
we  slept  we  truly  were  awake  to  appreciate  the  harmonious 
grandeur  of  the  universe  and  the  majestic  sweetness  of  exist 
ence?  And  so  with  death,  the  longer  sleep,  the  final  putting 
aside  the  clogs  and  fetters  which  contract  our  powers,  stifle 
our  emotions,  and  limit  our  happiness.  Who  would  be  awak 
ened  from  a  blissful  dream,  and  who  exchange,  once  tasted, 
the  supernal  for  the  earthly  joys? 

There  is  no  Death  !     What  seems  so  is  transition  ; 
This  life  of  mortal  breath 

Is  but  a  suburb  of  the  life  elysian, 
Whose  portal  we  call  Death. 

And  so  our  friend  has  gone  forth,  not  at  the  summons  of 
a  great  destroyer,  but  to  meet  a  great  deliverer.  He  has 
exchanged  disappointment  for  certainty,  wishing  for  being, 
limitation  for  coinpletest  freedom.  He  sweetly  sleeps,  the 
dream  is  all  fruition,  and  knows  what  we  term  death  is 
highest,  truest  life,  which  every  perfect  soul  shall  taste. 

We  do  not  claim  our  friend  a  perfect  man  or  a  faultless  one; 
but  the  massive  granite  covers  and  hides  his  every  error, 
leaving  the  virtues  free,  boundless,  and  uncoverable.  Death 
can  only  destroy  and  cover  the  useless  and  the  bad.  The 
man  is  like  the  diamond  in  the  rough ;  the  gem  is  there,  but  its 
beauty  is  marred  and  hidden  within  the  layers  of  baser  earth; 
but  death  removes  the  earthly  dross,  sets  free  the  matchless 
gem,  exposes  the  hidden  beauties,  and  reveals  the  marvelous 
reflecting  power  without  one  refracting  ray. 

What  man  has  not  his  faults,  his  human  weaknesses,  his 
earthly  follies?  Not  one.  But,  sir,  when  debit  and  credit  are 


96        Address  of  Mr.  Sibley,  of  Pennsylvania,  on  the 

summed  up  in  the  great  book  of  life;  when  the  evil  and  good 
are  placed  in  the  balances,  held  within  the  hands  of  infinite 
mercy  and  exactest  justice;  when  the  lofty  aspirations  and 
noble  impulses,  the  warm  human  sympathies  of  such  a  life  are 
set  against  its  frailties  and  failures,  its  mistakes  and  errors, 
who  among  us  that  would  not,  confidently  as  a  child  the  father, 
trust  all  to  Him  who  knoweth  and  meteth  to  every  man  his 
own  ?  Mr.  Speaker,  LELAND  STANFORD'S  tomb  needs  inscribed 
thereon  no  epitaph,  for  his  shall  remain  written  in  the  lives 
and  hearts  of  present  and  future  generations. 

In  the  fifteenth  Psalm  David  wrote  the  description  of  a 
good  man,  a  free  version  of  which  in  closing  I  shall  quote, 
as  seeming  singularly  appropriate  in  its  application  to  our 
departed  friend : 

Lord,  who's  the  happy  man  that  may  to  thy  blest  courts  repair, 

Not  stranger-like  to  visit  them,  but  to  inhabit  there? 

'Tis  he  whose  every  thought  and  deed  by  rules  of  virtue  moves, 

Whose  generous  tongue  disdains  to  speak  the  thing  his  heart  disproves. 

Who  never  did  a  slander  forge  his  neighbor's  fame  to  wound, 

Nor  hearken  to  a  false  report  by  malice  whispered  round, 

Whom  vice  in  all  its  pomp  and  power  can  treat  with  just  neglect, 

And  piety,  though  clothed  in  rags,  religiously  respect. 

Who  to  his  plighted  vows  and  trust  has  ever  firmly  stood, 

And  though  he  promise  to  his  loss  he  makes  his  promise  good. 

Whose  soul  in  usury  disdains  his  treasure  to  employ, 

Whom  no  rewards  can  ever  bribe  the  guiltless  to  destroy, 

The  man  who  by  this  steady  course  has  happiness  insured, 

When  earth's  foundation  shakes  shall  stand  by  Providence  secured. 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  97 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  BLAIR,  OF  NEW  HAMPSHIRE. 

Mr.  SPEAKER:  Senator  STANFORD  was  a  Colossus  among 
men.  He  came  to  us  from  the  Pacific  shore  and  seemed  to  be 
of  the  greatness  of  the  far  Western  world. 

No  more  impressive  personality  ever  moved  about  the  Halls 
of  Congress  than  LELAND  STANFORD,  of  California.  The 
development  of  our  Western  coast  was  made  by  an  order  of 
men  who,  although  they  were  born  and  nurtured  among  us  of 
the  East,  yet  took  on  a  certain  magnitude  akin  to  grandeur  in 
their  presence  which  may  have  been  derived  from  the  vastness 
and  tremendous  scope  of  the  deeds  which  they  performed  and 
their  extraordinary  natural  surroundings.  Some  of  them  seem 
like  the  big  trees  which  survive  in  their  mountains. 

When  Mr.  STANFORD  came  to  the  Senate  he  was  past  middle 
age,  but  still  vigorous  and  in  the  prime  of  his  mental  powers. 

His  great  wealth  made  him  conspicuous  in  the  minds  of  the 
people,  but  to  those  who  came  in  contact  with  him  there  was 
no  evidence  in  his  bearing  that  he  was  himself  conscious  of 
its  possession.  I  do  not  believe  that  he  thought  at  all  more 
highly  of  himself  or  valued  other  men  the  less  on  account  of 
the  possession  or  the  want  of  money.  No  man  was  ever  so 
little  changed  in  his  own  nature  by  its  influence.  His  soul 
was  too  large  to  be  misled  by  any  adventitious  circumstance 
of  life. 

His  mental  powers  were  very  great.  He  was  capable  of 
grasping  and  of  analyzing  the  most  difficult  problems  that 
present  themselves  in  human  affairs,  and  naturally  dwelt  upon 
those  which  concern  the  fundamental  interests  of  humanity. 
He  was  a  great  social  philosopher,  and  few  men  had  so  pro 
foundly  studied  the  questions  which  concern  the  general  wel- 
S.  Mis.  122 7 


98      Address  of  Mr.  Blair,  of  New  Hampshire,  on  the 

fare  of  mankind.  He  had  read  much,  but  had  thought  more, 
and  he  had  a  native  strength  which  made  the  thinking  of 
others  to  him  of  small  importance.  What  he  concluded  as  the 
result  of  his  own  mental  operations  was  likely  to  be  right — 
one  of  those  men  who  can  go  anywhere  alone. 

He  knew  intuitively  the  principles  of  things,  and  would  sur 
prise  you  with  wonderful  flashes  of  light  manifested  in  the 
simplest  ways  and  on  the  most  familiar  and  commonplace  occa 
sions,  and  in  entire  unconsciousness  that  what  he  was  saying 
might  be  worthy  of  note.  His  manner  and  forms  of  expres 
sion  were  brief  and  simple,  his  words  most  fit,  and  his  mean 
ing  always  clear. 

He  came  to  the  Senate  full  of  the  wisdom  of  experience  in 
dealing  with  great  affairs.  He  was  a  lawyer,  a  business  man, 
a  statesman,  a  founder  of  one  of  our  greatest  Commonwealths; 
traveled,  cultured,  and  accomplished ;  one  of  the  ripest  and 
strongest  men  of  action  in  that  illustrious  body. 

He  was  specially  interested  in  promoting  the  welfare  of  the 
common  people.  Any  measure  which  proposed  to  increase 
their  happiness  at  once  commanded  his  attention  and  support. 
The  laboring  man  had  no  wiser  or  truer  friend,  and  he  gave 
himself  to  the  advocacy  of  those  lines  of  social  and  industrial 
reform  which,  in  his  judgment,  combined  conservatism  with 
advancement,  in  that  wise  proportion  which  is  essential  to 
healthy  growth  and  real  improvement  to  society. 

He  knew  that  the  great  processes  of  nature  are  mild  and 
gradual  as  well  as  irresistible  in  their  operation,  and  that  they 
are  irresistible  because  they  are  mild  and  gradual. 

He  recognized  the  destructive  power  of  the  earthquake  and 
of  war,  but  he  did  not  mistake  them  for  primary  causes.  On 
the  other  hand,  he  comprehended  that  they  are  but  secondary, 
being  themselves  consequences  of  the  slow  and  silent  pressure 
of  the  eternal  nature  of  things,  and  but  incidents  in  the  long 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  99 

train  of  continuous  action  whereby  the  ages  accomplish  real 
transitions. 

He  had  that  largeness  of  view  which  comes  from  elevation, 
and,  in  a  reverent  sense,  with  him  one  day  was  as  a  thousand 
years  and  a  thousand  years  as  one  day. 

So  he  contemplated  the  condition  of  men  as  revealed  in  his 
tory  and  as  he  observed  it  under  his  own  eye  and  experience 
in  this  and  in  other  lands.  Guided  by  an  acute  moral  sense 
and  controlled  by  warm  and  generous  sympathies,  the  deduc 
tions  of  his  intellect  ripened  into  benevolent  and  comprehen 
sive  action  for  the  good  of  man  upon  a  scale  which  for  magni 
tude  and  prospective  consequences  is  unsurpassed,  if  not 
unequaled,  by  the  practical  work  accomplished  in  the  whole 
history  of  the  race  by  any  other  individual  uninspired  man. 

He  clearly  saw  the  possibilities  in  human  nature  and  that  we 
are  yet  in  our  infancy. 

The  great  elemental  forces  seemed  to  be  revealed  to  him,  and 
he  comprehended  what  they  could  do  with  this  mysterious 
creature  compounded  of  the  earth  and  the  heavens  —  of  inani 
mate  matter  and  the  soul  of  God.  He  knew  not  all  that  we 
can  be,  but  he  saw  that  the  possibilities  are  infinite,  and  that 
in  this  state  of  being  it  is  within  the  scope  of  reasonable  effort 
to  so  far  regenerate  and  transform  and  elevate  the  condition 
of  man  that  in  this  life  even  there  would  indeed  be  a  new 
heaven  and  a  new  earth. 

His  belief  in  the  unseen  and  spiritual  was  rather  in  the 
nature  of  touch  and  vision  than  of  deduction  from  reason.  In 
fact,  I  think  that  our  convictions  of  another  life  are  weakened 
by  speculation  and  philosophy.  If  one  does  not  believe  what 
his  mother  told  him,  and  that  rather  because  he  feels  it  than 
because  he  can  prove  it,  he  has  no  faith. 

Trained  in  early  life  to  the  rigid  creeds  of  the  forefathers, 
he  grew  away  from  their  harsher  and  nonessential  features,. 


100     Address  of  Mr.  Blair,  of  New  Hampshire,  on  the 

but  never  lost  their  essence,  which  is  the  fatherhood  of  God 
and  the  brotherhood  of  man. 

To  those  who  knew  him  intimately  Mr.  STANFORD  seemed 
to  live  iii  both  worlds  at  once,  and  to  be  perfectly  at  home  in 
either,  so  far  as  could  be  judged  by  one  who  could  only  asso 
ciate  with  him  in  this.  But  there  was  an  advantage  in  his 
comprehension  of  the  unseen,  for  it  enabled  him  to  fashion  his 
great  plans  with  a  view  to  that  other  and  higher  state  which 
to  him  was  the  unseen  only  in  the  sense  that  it  is  yet  to  come, 
and  is  rather  a  natural  and  necessary  development  than  an 
abrupt  translation  to  another  and  independent  condition,  and 
by  no  means  necessarily  disconnected  from  future  life  on  the 
planet  which  is  our  present  sphere  of  activity. 

In  all  his  anticipations  of  good  to  come,  the  enfranchisement 
and  elevation  of  woman  to  her  proper  and  equal  position  with 
man  in  everything  which  concerns  absolute  freedom  of  soul 
and  body  was  a  primary  condition.  It  is  clear  that  he  consid 
ered  the  mother  of  greater  consequence  in  the  evolution  of  a 
perfected  race  than  the  father,  for  to  the  influence  of  heredity 
she  adds  that  of  nurture  and  control  in  those  early  years  which 
fix  character  and  determine  the  course  of  life. 

In  short,  he  summed  up  all  in  education;  and  so  he  built  the 
great  university. 

There  it  stands,  overlooking  the  continent  and  the  seas,  and 
there  it  will  live  and  shine,  like  the  sun  in  the  heavens,  until 
time  shall  be  no  more. 

Mr.  Speaker,  I  leave  to  others  who  have  a  right  to  perform  it 
the  loving  duty  of  full  tribute  to  his  great  life  and  superior 
worth. 

I  loved  him,  and  I  believe  that  he  loved  me;  but  I  well  know 
that  others  have  the  superior  responsibility  of  this  occasion. 

He  died  and  is  buried. 

The  companion  who  was  his  equal  in  life  survives  to  mourn 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  101 

his  loss,  aud  alone  to  accomplish  the  great  purposes  which  were 
no  less  hers  than  his.  The  line  of  the  succession  has  failed  in 
the  earlier  exit  of  that  wonderful  child  whose  death  was  the 
birth  of  the  mighty  monument  to  them  all,  which  shall  preserve 
their  names  in  reverent  and  blessed  memory  forever. 

The  sympathy  of  the  whole  nation  is  with  this  woman,  who 
thus  rises  above  the  loss  of  all  that  woman  loves,  so  that  she 
may  fortify  and  secure  to  humanity  the  full  possession  and 
fruition  of  the  great  work,  to  have  accomplished  which  is  more 
than  to  have  founded  a  dynasty  and  to  have  built  an  empire 
upon  the  ruins  of  mankind. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  WHEELER,  OF  ALABAMA. 

Mr.  SPEAKER:  On  March  4,  1885,  the  most  distinguished 
and  noted  men  of  our  land  were  assembled  in  the  Hall  of  the 
United  States  Senate.  All  eyes  were  turned  toward  the  desk 
of  the  Vice-President  as  a  handsome  form  ascended  the  steps, 
raised  his  hand,  and  took  the  Senator's  oath  of  office.  A  well- 
poised  head,  an  expression  indicating  firmness  of  character 
and  intellectual  power,  showed  the  superior  type  of  this  calm, 
dignified  man.  It  was  the  monarch  of  the  great  West  — 
LELAND  STANFORD,  of  California.  He  was  not  a  monarch  by 
election,  nor  by  appointment,  nor  did  he  become  a  monarch  by 
hereditary  descent;  but  by  God-given  and  self-cultivated 
powers  he  rose  superior  to  other  men,  as  the  lion  becomes  the 
monarch  of  wild  beasts  and  the  towering  oak  the  monarch  of 
the  forest.  Cicero  and  Byron  were  monarch  of  words;  Alex 
ander,  Charlemagne,  and  Napoleon  were  monarchs  among 
warriors;  and  when  LELAND  STANFORD  joined  the  Atlantic 
to  the  Pacific  Ocean  by  completing  the  great  transcontinental 
highway,  and  more  than  any  other  man  contributed  to  the 


102         Address  of  Mr.  Wheeler,  of  Alabama,  on  the 

development  of  liis  adopted  State,  the  world  hailed  this  great 
man  as  a  monarch  of  material  development. 

It  was  not  his  marvelous  achievements  alone  that  stamped 
him  as  great  among  men;  it  was  not  because  of  the  golden 
aureole  of  success  which  crowned  his  life  work,  nor  because  he 
was  the  richest  among  his  fellows,  having  many  millions  of 
money  and  vast  corporations  under  his  control.  There  was 
more  than  all  these  which  caused  the  world  to  respect  and 
esteem  LELAND  STANFORD  ;  it  was  because  his  was  a  noble, 
kingly  spirit  which  rose  superior  to  his  possessions,  vast  as 
they  were,  and  made  them  his  servants  in  the  development  of 
far-reaching  plans  for  the  benefit  of  humanity.  It  was  not  the 
accidents  of  fortune  nor  the  accumulation  of  wealth  that 
marked  him  as  a  successful  man,  but  the  individual  will  and 
masterful  mind  which  enabled  him  to  soar  above  these  acci 
dents  and  to  realize  his  best  ideas,  where  men  of  smaller  mold 
would  have  bowed  to  circumstances  and  left  their  ideas  to 
the  realms  of  idle  dreams. 

The  career  of  LELAND  STANFORD  is  an  object  lesson  which 
should  be  carefully  expounded  to  the  youth  of  our  laud;  and 
it  exemplifies  perfectly  the  motto  of  his  great  university,  whose 
declared  object  is  "  To  qualify  students  for  personal  success 
and  direct  usefulness."  According  to  this  ideal,  the  personal 
success  of  the  individual  is  to  be  gauged  by  his  direct  useful 
ness  to  humanity,  not  merely  by  the  dollars  and  cents  he  may 
accumulate,  though  he  be  fifty  times  a  millionaire. 

His  vast  wealth  was  an  incident,  not  an  object,  in  the  life 
of  Senator  STANFORD,  and  he  understood  better  than  most 
men  the  fact  that  the  possession  of  money  is  a  responsibility 
intrusted  to  an  individual  for  noble  and  unselfish  ends.  His 
donations  to  the  Commonwealth  he  so  ably  represented  and 
so  much  loved  surpass  in  munificence  any  gift  ever  made  by 
an  individual  for  any  purpose. 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  103 

Senator  STANFORD  was  the  product  of  a  farm  home,  the 
kind  of  home  that  has  produced  all  our  greatest  and  best  men. 
The  farm  home  is  the  best  training  school  for  boys,  and  the 
country  school,  though  lacking  the  artificial  conveniences  of 
the  more  pretentious  institutions  of  the  cities,  is  calculated  to 
develop  individuality  of  mind  and  strength  of  character.  The 
birthplace  of  Senator  STANFORD  was  Watervliet,  about  8 
miles  from  the  city  of  Albany.  He  was  the  fourth  of  seven 
brothers.  His  father,  though  a  plain,  unpretending  farmer, 
was  a  public-spirited  and  enterprising  man,  taking  a  deep 
interest  and  a  leading  part  in  the  development  of  his  section 
and  the  establishment  of  railroads  in  his  vicinity.  He  foresaw 
the  possibilities  of  future  development,  but  he  little  dreamed 
of  the  gigantic  enterprises  which  would  be  successfully  carried 
through  by  his  young  son. 

At  the  age  of  18  young  STANFORD  cleared  some  land  for  his 
father,  realizing  some  two  thousand  or  three  thousand  dollars 
by  the  sale  of  the  timber.  This  sum  he  ungrudgingly  invested 
in  the  completion  of  his  education,  and  applied  himself  to  the 
study  of  law,  realizing  that  personal  success  depends  upon 
individual  development.  For  four  years  he  practiced  law  in 
an  obscure  Wisconsin  town.  In  1850  he  married  Miss  Jane 
Lathrop,  of  Albany,  and  in  her  he  found  an  ideal  helpmeet 
and  a  congenial  spirit.  A  woman  of  great  intellectual  power, 
one  of  the  few  capable  of  controlling  the  vast  accumulations 
now  thrust  upon  her.  All  who  knew  Senator  and  Mrs.  STAN 
FORD  can  well  appreciate  the  consolation  felt  by  this  great 
philanthropist  in  his  last  days  to  know  that  his  loved  wife 
would  find  her  greatest  happiness  in  continuing  the  grand 
and  good  works  he  inaugurated. 

In  1852  we  went  to  California  and  took  charge  of  a  supply 
store  for  his  brothers.  Here  he  acquired  an  intimate  acquaint 
ance  with  *he  lives  and  characteristics  of  the  miners  and 


104         Address  of  Mr.  Wheeler,  of  Alabama,  on  the 

pioneers  in  that  part  of  the  world.  He  soon  became  a  leader 
in  the  community  on  account  of  his  strict  integrity  and  calm, 
dispassionate  impartiality,  as  well  as  the  geniality  of  his 
disposition,  which  always  led  him  to  take  the  part  of  the 
downtrodden  and  oppressed.  He  was  chosen  delegate  to  the 
Eepublican  national  convention  of  1860,  at  Chicago,  where  his 
influence  and  power  largely  contributed  to  the  nomination  of 
Abraham  Lincoln,  and  while  in  Washington  during  the  early 
part  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  administration  he  was  nominated  and 
elected  governor  of  the  State  of  California.  While  occupying 
this  position  he  cut  down  the  State  debt  one-half,  established 
the  State  Normal  College,  and  assisted  in  inaugurating  enter 
prises  which  have  added  very  much  to  the  progress  and  wealth 
of  the  entire  Pacific  Slope. 

He  might  have  been  reelected,  but  meanwhile  he  had  com 
bined  with  a  few  other  adventurous  spirits  in  the  gigantic 
enterprise  of  a  transcontinental  line  of  railway,  and  the  suc 
cess  of  the  undertaking  demanded  all  the  powers  of  his  mind. 
He  exercised  a  general  supervision,  attending  principally  to 
legislation,  and  was  looked  upon  as  the  controlling  influence 
in  the  corporation.  The  first  appropriation  bill  for  the  Central 
Pacific  Railroad  was  signed  in  18G2.  On  May  20, 1869,  LELAND 
STANFORD,  as  president  of  the  company,  drove  the  golden 
spike  that  marked  the  completion  of  the  transcontinental  line. 
Later  he  turned  his  attention  to  the  agricultural  development 
of  California,  and,  having  invested  in  lands  to  a  very  large 
extent,  he  organized  the  finest  stock  farms  and  vineyards  in 
the  world.  Passionately  fond  of  live  stock,  he  conceived  the 
idea  of  applying  to  the  breeding  of  horses  the  same  principles 
of  development  he  advocated  in  other  directions,  and  some  of 
the  horses  reared  upon  his  celebrated  stock  farm  at  Palo  Alto 
are  world  renowned. 

The  death  of  Leland  Stanford,  jr.,  his  only  and  idolized 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  105 

son,  was  a  heart- crushing  blow  to  his  parents,  who  found  a 
solace  in  their  bereavement  in  the  endowment  and  establish 
ment  of  the  university  which  bears  his  name  and  which  forms 
the  grandest  monument  ever  erected  to  a  human  being,  aii 
institution  more  liberally  endowed  than  any  in  the  world, 
the  income  of  which  will  in  a  tew  years  amount  to  many 
millions  of  dollars. 

Centuries  will  roll  by,  songs  which  tell  of  the  glories  of  war 
riors  and  statesmen  will  be  forgotten,  monuments  erected  to 
their  memories  will  crumble  to  dust ;  but  as  long  as  the  placid 
waters  of  the  grand  Pacific  Ocean  wash  the  golden  shores  of 
California  the  name  of  LELAND  STANFORD  will  be  remem 
bered,  cherished,  revered,  and  honored. 

While  engaging  in  these  mournful  ceremonies  the  bells  are 
'-oiling  the  knell  which  announces  to  the  world  that  another 
great  and  grand  philanthropist,  George  W.  Childs,  has  been 
called  to  the  home  of  his  Father  in  Heaven. 

In  the  dim  recollection  of  the  distant  past  I  recall  a  child's 
prayer,  much  of  which  expresses  yearnings  which  certainly 
found  a  place  in  the  hearts  of  these  two  men. 

May  it  not  have  been  that  the  good  they  have  done  was  due 
to  the  teachings  of  a  sainted  mother,  who  during  their  tender 
and  impressible  years  taught  them  to  kneel  by  her  side  and 
utter  words  like  these : 

Father,  Divine!  Feed  my  soul  with  the  bread  of  Heaven. 

Give  me  to  drink  of  the  water  of  life  that  I  may  grow  up  in  Thine  image 
and  become  in  thought,  feeling,  and  action  an  expression  of  Thy  will. 

Reveal  in  me  day  by  day  those  truths  which  shall  teach  me  to  be  light 
to  the  blind,  strength  to  the  feeble,  and  feet  to  the  lame,  and  may  Thy 
kingdom  come  in  me,  and  Thy  will  be  done  through  me,  in  the  world, 
now  and  evermore. 

Certainly  these  men  were  "light  to  the  blind,"  "strength  to 
the  feeble,"  and  "feet  to  the  lame,"  and  how  true  it  is  that  the 
good  they  accomplished  was  the  will  of  God  done  through  them. 


106     Address  of  Mr.  Pickler,  of  South  Dakota,  on  the 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  PICKLER,  OF  SOUTH  DAKOTA. 

Mr.  SPEAKER:  LELAND  STANFORD,  whose  memory  we 
to-day  commemorate,  will  ever  remain  a  remarkable  character 
of  the  nineteenth  century  in  American  history.  It  would  be 
very  difficult  to  find  a  parallel  in  the  life  of  any  prominent 
American  contemporary  with  him. 

He  was  an  extraordinary  man.  His  success  in  life  may  have 
been  largely  enhanced  by  his  surroundings,  but  his  success 
was  in  himself.  No  adverse  environment  would  have  pre 
vented  him  from  attaining  large  successes  where  success  was 
at  all  possible.  Many  men  await  opportunities ;  he  created 
them.  A  far  greater  number  of  men  fail  from  neglect  to  embrace 
opportunities  for  advancement  as  they  offer  themselves  than 
fail  for  want  of  opportunities. 

Senator  STANFORD  not  only  seized  opportunities  as  they 
presented  themselves,  but  possessed  the  much  higher  order  of 
ability  of  reasoning  from  existing  facts  and  their  proper 
manipulation  to  great  future  results.  His  career  from  a  New 
York  farm  to  lawyer,  to  merchant  on  the  opposite  coast  of  the 
continent,  to  the  governorship  of  a  great  Commonwealth,  to 
the  position  of  a  great  railway  king,  to  the  United  States  Sen 
ate,  and  to  crown  all  these  successes  by  his  magnificent  acts  of 
philanthropy  and  kindly  dealings  with  his  fellow-men,  write 
his  fame  large,  his  genius  great,  his  success  a  wonder.  His 
beginnings  were  not  different  from  tens  of  thousands  of  Ameri 
can  youths,  but  we  may  seek  long  to  find  his  equal  in  the 
achievements  of  life  which  the  better  judgment  of  mankind 
calls  great. 

With  but  a  limited  personal  acquaintance  with  Senator 
STANFORD,  I  have  for  years  found  much  in  his  history  to 
admire. 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford,  107 

As  the  years  go  by,  whatever  clusters  around  any  portion  of 
the  history  of  Abraham  Lincoln  awakens  a  kindly  interest  in 
the  breast  of  every  true  American  citizen,  and  to  have  been  a 
member  of  the  convention  which  first  placed  him  in  nomination 
for  the  Presidency,  as  was  the  subject  of  these  services,  binds 
in  pleasing  association  the  memory  of  these  two  distinguished 
Americans. 

LELAND  STANFORD  was  a  patriot.  He  was  the  war  gov 
ernor  of  California.  His  fame  would  have  been  secure  had  his 
career  closed  with  that  service. 

Whoever  remembers  the  dark  days  of  the  civil  war  will 
readily  call  to  mind  the  great  anxiety  of  the  North  for  the  con 
tinued  loyalty  of  that  far-away  isolated  portion  of  the  country, 
the  Pacific  coast. 

Few  places  of  earth  are  to-day  so  far  away  from  us  in  point 
of  time  as  was  at  that  period  the  Pacific  coast  from  the  busy 
and  populated  portion  of  the  Union.  This  isolation  and  the 
lack  of  communication  with  the  far  West  caused  anxious 
thought  in  the  North  as  to  the  character  of  the  support  that 
might  be  expected  from  that  locality  in  upholding  the  Union 
cause.  Moreover,  from  teachings  and  sentiments  just  pre 
vious  to  the  beginning  of  the  war  of  certain  of  her  public  men, 
there  was  ground  for  these  fears. 

Mr.  Elaine  says  of  California  and  Oregon  at  this  time: 

The  loyal  adherence  of  those  States  to  the  National  Government  was  a 
profound  disappointment  to  the  Confederacy. 

Jefferson  Davis  had  expected,  with  a  confidence  amounting  to  certainty, 
and  l»ased,  it  is  believed,  on  personal  pledges,  that  the  Pacific  coast,  if  it 
did  not  actually  join  the  South,  would  be  disloyal  to  the  Union,  and  would 
from  its  remoteness  and  its  superlative  importance  require  a  large  con 
tingent  of  the  national  forces  to  hold  it  in  subjection. 

It  was  expected  by  the  South  that  California  and  Oregon  would  give  at 
least  as  much  trouble  as  Kentucky  and  Missouri,  and  would  thus  indirectly 
but  powerfully  aid  the  Southern  cause. 


108     Address  of  Mr.  Pickler^  of  Soutn  Dakota,  on  the 

The  enthusiastic  devotion  which  these  distant  States  showed  to  the 
Union  was  therefore  a  surprise  to  the  South  and  a  most  welcome  relief  to 
the  National  Government.  The  loyalty  of  the  Pacific  coast  was  in  the 
hearts  of  the  people. 

Mr.  Speaker,  it  was  aroused  ard  intensified  by  such  men  as 
Governor  Downey,  Governor  Whittaker,  Thomas  Starr  King, 
and  LELAND  STANFORD. 

And  in  the  fall  of  1861  the  latter  was  elected  governor  of 
California,  and  from  this  time  forward  Governor  STANFORD 
takes  place  in  American  history  with  that  illustrious  company 
of  distinguished  men,  the  war  governors  of  the  loyal  States  of 
the  North. 

Eminent  in  intellect  and  patriotic  in  duty,  they  were  espe 
cially  adapted  to  the  great  duty  imposed  upon  them. 

And,  Mr.  Speaker,  the  great  work  of  these  men,  the  support 
they  afforded  the  President,  and  how  much  the  salvation  of  the 
Union  depended  upon  their  services  will  never  be  known  by  a 
loyal  people  until  fuller  histories  than  have  yet  appeared  shall 
be  written  of  John  A.  Andrew,  of  Massachusetts;  Israel  Wash- 
burn,  of  Maine;  William  A.  Buckingham,  of  Connecticut;  Wil 
liam  Sprague,  of  Rhode  Island;  Nathaniel  S.  Berry,  of  New 
Hampshire;  Erastus  Fairchild,  of  Vermont;  Edwin  D.Morgan, 
of  New  York;  Andrew  G.  Curtin,  of  Pennsylvania;  Charles 
Olden,  of  New  Jersey ;  Oliver  P.  Morton,  of  Indiana;  Samuel  J. 
Kirk  wood,  of  Iowa;  William  Deunison,of  Ohio;  Richard  Yates, 
of  Illinois ;  Austin  Blair,  of  Michigan ;  Alexander  Wr.  Randall, 
of  Wisconsin;  Alexander  Ramsey,  of  Minnesota,  and  LELAND 
STANFORD,  of  California.  These  will  ever  be  known  as  the 
war  governors  of  that  great  struggle. 

As  one  of  the  leading  spirits  and  prime  movers  in  initiating 
andbuilding  the  greatCentral  Pacific  Rail  way,  Mr.  STANFORD'S 
wonderful  ability  impresses  all. 

To  the  business  world  he  will  probably  be  best  known  as 
president  of  this  railway  company. 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  109 

It  may  be  said  that  the  times  for  building  this  road  were 
propitious  5  that  it  was  regarded  of  the  greatest  importance  to 
the  nation  that  this  line  of  communication  should  be  estab 
lished. 

Grant  all  this;  yet  when  the  stupendous  magnitude  of  the 
undertaking  is  considered,  the  great  mountain  barriers  and 
trackless  wastes  to  be  traversed,  the  inconceivable  amount  of 
money  required,  the  care,  trouble,  and  anxiety  connected  with 
every  branch  of  the  enterprise,  when  all  these  are  considered 
the  mind  of  the  ordinary  man  is  appalled  and  he  can  but  marvel 
at  the  enterprise. 

In  the  beautiful  Lafayette  Park  of  St.  Louis  stands  the 
statue  of  Thomas  H.  Beuton,  the  veteran  Senator  of  Missouri, 
the  workmanship  of  the  distinguished  artist,  Harriet  Hosrner. 
It  represents  the  old  Senator  addressing  the  United  States 
Senate  on  his  pet  scheme,  the  building  of  a  Pacific  railroad. 

The  artist  represents  the  old  Senator  gazing  and  pointing 
out  across  the  continent  westward,  while  on  the  die  of  the  ped 
estal  below  appears  the  inscription,  "There  is  the  East;  there 
is  India." 

Men  said  that  the  old  Senator  was  visionary  to  talk  of  build 
ing  a  Pacific  railroad,  but  we  know  that  in  the  presence  of  the 
governors  of  four  States  and  Territories,  on  the  heights  of  the 
great  Western  mountains,  twenty-five  years  ago,  LELAND 
STANFORD,  president  of  the  Central  Pacific  Railway  Company, 
drove  the  golden  spike  that  completed  this  great  iron  high  way 
across  the  continent,  that  united  the  Orient  and  the  Occident, 
and  opened  up  the  first  great  transcontinental  railway  in  this 
country  over  which  the  world's  great  commerce  of  the  East  and 
the  world's  great  commerce  of  the  West  might  have  a  safe 
and  rapid  transit. 

Governor  STANFORD  acquired  much  of  his  princely  fortune  in 
the  building  of  this  road;  certainly  his  efforts  therein  deserved 
a  rich  reward. 


110     Address  of  Mr.  Pickler,  of  South  Dakota,  on  the 

To  be  chosen  a  member  of  the  American  Senate  is  one  of  the 
highest  political  honors  the  world  affords,  and  one  that  can 
come  to  but  few  men,  and  Governor  STANFORD'S  election  and 
reelection  to  this  exalted  position  is  only  further  proof  of  his 
never-failing  certainty  of  accomplishing  whatever  he  with 
determination  willed  to  do. 

No  man,  however,  endowed  with  Senator  STANFORD'S  admir 
able  characteristics  and  traits  of  character  could  remain  a 
mediocre. 

Cheerful,  kind-hearted,  generous,  energetic,  persevering,  self- 
reliant,  determined,  unbending  will,  unswerving  devotion  to  a 
cause,  with  physical  endurance  and  superior  judgment  and 
good  sense,  nature  lavished  upon  him  superb  equipment. 

More  than  all  these,  he  was  of  high  moral  character,  an 
attribute  without  which  no  man  ever  attains  true  success. 

Senator  STANFORD  was  a  natural  leader  of  men. 

Men  relied  upon  his  judgment  and  heeded  his  words. 

Shortly  after  entering  Congress  at  a  meeting  of  Western 
Senators  and  Representatives  held  to  consider  the  best  means 
of  promoting  the  interests  of  their  locality  in  Congress,  I  was 
much  impressed  with  Senator  STANFORD'S  power  to  impress 
men. 

He  was  quiet,  seemingly  reserved,  until  there  had  been  quite 
a  general  expression  of  opinion,  when  in  a  gentle  but  expres 
sive  manner  he  considered  the  questions  discussed,  presenting 
his  opinions  in  a  calm  and  dignified  way,  and  with  a  cogent 
reasoning  that  carried  conviction  as  to  the  soundness  of  his 
position. 

In  my  estimation  the  brightest  star  in  the  crown  of  Senator 
STANFORD'S  virtues  will  be  his  general  kindly  regard  for  his 
fellow-men,  with  ever  a  sensitive  and  attentive  ear  to  all 
requests  or  petitions  of  servants,  employes,  or  fellow-citizens, 
and  disposition  to  grant  requests  and  help  when  worthy  causes 
were  presented.  He  loved  man  because  he  was  brother  man. 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  Ill 

His  faith  was   the  fatherhood  of  God  and  the  brotherhood 
of  man. 
Cordially,  sincerely,  he  indorsed  the  sentiment  of  Eobert 

Burns : 

What  tho'  on  hamely  fare  we  dine, 

Wear  hodden-grey  and  a'  that ; 
Gie  fools  their  silks  and  knaves  their  wine, 
A  man's  a  man  for  a'  that. 
For  a'  that,  and  a'  that, 
Their  tinsel  show,  and  a'  that ; 
The  honest  man,  tho'  e'er  sae  poor, 
Is  king  o'  men  for  a'  that. 

Added  to  his  own  powers,  he  to  whose  life  and  services  we 
to-day  pay  homage,  from  his  young  manhood  through  life  and 
to  the  end,  had  the  love,  counsel,  and  advice  of  a  talented, 
noble,  and  true  wife. 

A  woman  of  true  nobility  of  character,  she  was  the  worthy 
companion  of  the  great  man  whose  cares,  anxieties,  and  suc 
cesses  she  so  ardently  shared.  Ever  was  it  truly  said  of  her, 
"The  heart  of  her  husband  doth  safely  trust  in  her." 

What  a  true  wife  contributes  to  the  successes  of  a  husband 
will  be  known  only  when  the  records  of  Heaven  are  spread 
before  the  eyes  of  the  redeemed. 

Her  kindness  to  all  and  generosity  of  heart  kept  even  pace 
with  these  attributes  of  her  husband. 

Her  large  contributions  as  the  chief  promoter  of  the  free 
kindergarten  in  San  Francisco  are  known  of  the  whole  coun 
try  ;  the  generous  Lady  Bountiful  of  this  institution  as  por 
trayed  in  Patsy,  that  admirable  story  of  Kate  Douglas 
Wiggin,  so  rich  in  pathos  and  humor.  In  no  other  school  in 
this  broad  land  are  children  of  foreign  birth  and  language 
taken  and  freely  taught  the  language  and  customs  of  their 
adopted  country. 

In  a  book  older  than  Patsy,  an  appreciative  people  will  note 


112     Address  of  Mr.  Pickler,  of  South  Dakota,  on  the 

a  true  characterization  of  Mrs.  Jaiie  E.  Stanford  in  the  old 
and  familiar  words:  "  She  stretcheth  out  her  hand  to  the  poor; 
yea,  she  reacheth  forth  her  hands  to  the  needy.'" 

The  overwhelming  sorrow  of  Senator  and  Mrs.  STANFORD 
was  the  death  of  Leland  Stanford,  jr. 

An  only  child,  a  beloved  boy,  the  idol  of  these  parental 
hearts,  was  called  away.  How  strange  the  dispensations  of 
Providence ! 

Around  this  son  were  anchored  all  earthly  hopes  and  ambi 
tions  of  the  parents. 

The  death  of  the  boy  determined  the  philanthropic  channel 
in  which  should  flow  the  great  wealth  of  the  tender-hearted 
parents  in  the  establishment  of  Lelaiid  Stanford  Junior  Uni 
versity  at  the  Palo  Alto  home  in  California. 

Its  history,  its  founding,  its  design,  are  household  words  in 
the  nation,  being  the  crowning  act  of  these  two  great  philan 
thropists,  bestowing  their  great  wealth  in  the  erection  of  a 
lasting  monument  to  the  son's  memory,  coupled  with  their 
genuine  love  of  mankind,  in  assisting  young  men  and  young 
women  of  this  and  other  lands  in  procuring  a  higher  education 
and  equipping  themselves  practically  for  the  battle  of  life  — 
an  institution  which  in  all  human  probability  will  endure  for 
centuries,  and  whose  benign  influence  will  be  world-wide  in 
its  application. 

In  the  language  of  the  founders  of  the  institution,  they 
assert:  ult  is  our  hope  to  found  a  university  where  all  may 
have  a  chance  to  secure  an  education  such  as  we  intended  our 
son  should  have,"  and  with  the  sanctifying  influences  of  the 
sorrow  for  the  son.  their  affection  enlarging  and  reaching  out 
tenderly  to  humanity,  they  exclaim:  "The  children  of  Cali 
fornia  shall  be  our  children.'' 

Those  who  know  Mrs.  Stanford  best  do  not  question  her 
ability  to  continue  the  work,  and  with  a  fidelity  to  the  trust 


Life  and  Character  of  Lela nd  Sta nford.  113 

imposed  upon  her  by  her  husband  and  a  love  for  the  institu 
tion  coequal  with  his  the  development  of  the  university  must 
be  the  realization  of  the  fondest  hopes  of  both. 

And  in  the  years  to  come  from  one  class  to  another  of  the 
university  will  be  transmitted  the  story  of  the  lives  of  the 
founders,  their  successes,  their  kindliness,  their  great  wealth, 
their  generosity,  their  devout  lives,  the  death  of  the  son,  the 
great  sorrow,  and  the  founding  of  the  university. 

The  romantic  and  heroic  days  of  the  early  Californians  and 
their  struggles,  the  life  of  the  early  merchant,  the  governor 
ship,  the  transcontinental  railway  king,  the  United  States 
Senator,  and  the  founding  of  the  university  will  enter  into  the 
intensely  interesting  story  of  the  institution. 

In  gentleness  will  be  recounted  the  love  of  these  parents  for 
the  son  whose  name  the  university  bears,  that  in  the  Stanford 
mansion  in  the  years  after  his  death  his  room  was  ever  kept 
ready  and  in  waiting  for  him,  and  at  nightfall  the  lamp  was 
dimly  lighted  and  bedclothes  turned  down  with  loving  hands, 
as  if  awaiting  his  expected  coming. 

The  father  has  joined  the  son;  the  mother  lingers  to  com 
plete  the  work. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  BOWERS,  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

Mr.  SPEAKER:  Knowing  that  many  members  desired  to 
address  the  House  to-day,  I  had  thought  I  would  keep  silent, 
but  find  that  I  am  unwilling  to  let  the  occasion  pass  without 
adding  iny  humble  tribute  to  the  memory  of  the  man  whose 
name  is  so  honorably  and  inseparably  connected  with  the  his 
tory  and  fame  of  California. 

Twenty  years  ago  this  winter  I  first  made  the  personal 
acquaintance  of  LELAND  STANFORD.  At  that  time  he  was 
president  of  the  Central  Pacific  Railroad  Company  and  I  was 
S.  Mis.  122 s 


114         Address  of  Mr.  Bowers,  of  California,  on  the 

a  member  of  the  California  legislature.  That  winter  a  tierce 
political  eruption  culminated  and  subsided.  Skillful  politicians 
invented  and  engineered  to  a  success  a  scheme  to  make  the 
then  governor  of  the  State  a  United  States  Senator. 

In  furtherance  of  this  scheme  strong  appeals  were  made  to 
the  prejudices  of  the  people,  with,  it  must  be  admitted,  many 
grounds  for  complaint.  Political  parties  were  for  the  time  dis 
organized,  apparently  disbanded.  The  people  almost  en  masse 
were  arrayed  against  the  railroad  company,  and  its  president 
and  all  connected  with  it  were  denounced  in  unmeasured  terms 
as  enemies  of  the  State,  and  every  member  and  Senator  who 
refused  to  vote  for  the  independent  candidate  for  United  States 
Senator  was  stigmatized  as  a  tool  of  the  railroad  company.  At 
that  time  the  section  of  the  State  in  which  I  resided  had  no 
railroads.  It  was  not,  therefore,  for  our  interests  to  fight  rail 
roads.  We  were  very  desirous  of  acquiring  a  railroad,  and 
were  using  every  endeavor  to  induce  railroad  builders  to  come 
our  way.  I  was  therefore  a  railroad  man,  and  it  was  at  this 
time  I  made  the  acquaintance  of  this  strong1,  genial  man,  an 
acquaintance,  and  I  may  say  a  friendship,  which  was  main 
tained  up  to  the  time  of  his  death. 

The  election  over,  the  whole  design  and  purpose  of  the  great 
uprising  of  the  people  being  accomplished,  the  Independent 
party  disappeared,  resolved  into  its  original  elements,  and  in  a 
comparatively  short  time  thereafter  I  saw  these,  same  people 
gathered  in  the  legislative  hall  electing  the  man  they  had  so 
bitterly  denounced,  this  president  of  the  Central  Pacific  Kail- 
road  Company,  to  the  highest  office  in  their  gift,  that  of  United 
States  Senator,  and  at  the  expiration  of  his  first  term  reelecting 
him  without  protest.  Such  are  the  changes  brought  by  the 
whirligig  of  time. 

I  do  not  at  this  time  intend  to  recapitulate  the  incidents  of 
a  life  that  are  familiar  not  alone  to  all  Californians,  but  to  most 


Life  and  Character  of  Lei  and  Stanford,  1 15 

of  the  people  of  the  United  States,  and,  indeed,  to  the  world. 
I  will  only  say  here  that  after  the  passions  engendered  by  bitter 
political  struggles  have  passed  away,  or  have  been  softened  by 
time,  the  people  of  California  find  that  they  are  proud  of  and 
honor  the  memory  of  their  railroad  builder,  their  governor, 
their  United  States  Senator,  and  founder  of  their  great  univer 
sity,  LELAND  STANFORD. 

Oidy  a  man  of  much  more  than  ordinary  ability,  only  a  true 
man,  only  a  good  man  could  have  so  won  the  hearts  of  the 
people  of  California;  so  they  honor  his  memory  as  a  man  sub 
ject  to  the  passions,  the  temptations,  and  the  limitations  of  a 
man ;  but  through  all  these,  above  all  these,  they  now  know 
his  heart  and  purpose  was  right  and  noble  all  the  time. 

And  this  purpose  is  well  expressed  in  the  following  lines 
taken  from  the  Sequoia,  the  university  paper: 

Since  we  last  met  uiider  the  arches  of  the  quadrangle  we  have  lost  oue 
whose  name  will  ever  be  held  in  tender  remembrance,  not  only  by  every 
student  of  Leland  Stanford  Junior  University,  but  by  every  friend  of  educa 
tion.  Nyone  but  those  who  have  felt  the  divine  thirst  for  knowledge  cau 
know  what  Senator  STANFORD'S  life  has  meant  to  those  of  us  whose  educa 
tion  has  been  a  possibility  only  through  his  benefaction.  For  weeks  the 
press  of  the  nation  has  been  busy  recording  again  the  story  of  his  life.  We 
can  say  nothing  of  him  that  has  not  been  better  said.  His  work  is  written 
in  the  history  of  hiscountry.  His  monuments  are  many,  hut  the  most  endur 
ing  will  be  the  lives  of  future  generations,  the  achievement  of  whose  highest 
possibilities  will  be  a  lasting  memorial  to  his  name.  The  best  expression 
we  can  make  of  our  sorrow  for  his  death,  of  our  tender  recollection  of  his 
son,  and  of  our  sympathy  for  his  widow,  is  an  active  interest  in  furthering 
their  dearest  wishes,  as  far  as  in  us  lies,  in  the  elevation  of  our  race. 

But,  Mr.  Speaker,  one  is  living  who  shares  with  the  dead  in 
this  loving  memory,  and  so  long  as  the  memory  of  LELAND 
STANFORD  shall  be  cherished  in  the  hearts  of  the  people  of 
California  so  long  will  they  honor  the  estimable  woman  who 
through  all  his  active  life  was  his  helpmeet,  sharing  in  all 
his  struggles,  disappointments,  and  triumphs,  and  now  the 


116  Address  of  Mr,  Wise,  of  Virginia,  on  the 

almoner  of  his  bounties  and  benefactions,  devoting  her  life  to 
completing  his  work — their  work — and  securing  its  blessings 
to  all  the  people.  I  speak  of  his  noble  wife,  Mrs.  Stanford. 
Honored  and  loved  in  her  life,  when  she  shall  be  laid  to  rest 
by  his  side  her  name  shall  live  with  his,  and  so  long  as  the 
remembrance  of  good  and  great  deeds  shall  be  cherished  by 
mankind  will  the  names  of  these  two  remain  a  sweet  memory. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  WISE,  OF  VIRGINIA. 

Mr.  SPEAKER:  In  the  death  of  LELAND  STANFORD  Cali 
fornia  lost  an  honored  and  useful  Senator,  the  country  a  dis 
tinguished  and  patriotic  citizen,  and  humanity  a  generous 
benefactor.  An  impartial  view  of  his  career  from  the  cradle 
to  the  grave  leads  to  the  conclusion  that  he  was  a  man  of 
uncommon  intellectual  vigor  and  indomitable  energy.  In  the 
contemplation  of  his  achievements  the  wonder  grows  that  he 
was  able  to  accomplish  so  much.  Starting  without  the  aid  of 
influential  friends  or  inherited  wealth  he  carved  his  way  to 
fortune  and  fame.  In  the  story  of  his  life  the  ambitious  and 
aspiring  youth  of  our  country  will  find  encouragement  and 
inspiration. 

Having  received  such  education  and  training  as  could  be 
acquired  in  the  common  schools  of  his  native  county,  he 
entered  upon  the  study  of  the  law  in  the  city  of  Albany,  and 
continued  in  the  preparation  for  the  duties  of  that  profession 
until  he  went,  in  1848,  to  Port  Washington,  Wis.,  to  begin  its 
practice.  Little  can  be  said  of  his  career  as  a  lawyer,  because 
its  duration  was  limited  by  the  happening  of  an  event  which 
caused  the  abandonment  of  all  aspirations  in  that  direction 
and  the  change  of  the  current  of  his  life.  The  destruction  by 
fire  of  his  library  and  nearly  all  his  goods  turned  his  eyes  to 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford,  117 

that  splendid  Commonwealth  on  the  Pacific  with  which  his 
name  is  so  intimately  associated  in  history.  From  the  ashes 
of  that  calamity  he  rose  in  splendor  and  strength. 

He  was  married  to  Miss  Lathrop  in  Albany  in  1850,  and  in 
1852  became  a  citizen  of  California.  The  slow  and  irksome 
ways  of  professional  life  were  abandoned  to  engage  in  more 
remunerative  employment.  The  times,  circumstances,  and 
events  were  auspicious,  and  the  conditions  favorable  for 
undertaking  and  conducting  large  enterprises  to  successful 
terminations.  California  had  recently  been  admitted  into  the 
sisterhood  of  States,  and  was  being  rapidly  peopled  by  hardy 
and  adventurous  immigrants,  attracted  by  the  descriptions  of 
its  glorious  climate  and  rich  sources  of  wealth.  Bayard  Taylor 
spoke  of  this  State  as — 

The  youngest,  fairest  far  of  which  our  world  c;iu  boast. 

In  the  years  succeeding  the  foundation  of  the  Commonwealth 
LELAND  STANFORD  bore  a  conspicuous  part,  both  in  political 
movements  and  industrial  developments.  Among  such  men 
as  composed  the  early  settlers  of  California  force  and  character 
were  necessary  to  the  attainment  of  success.  Having  the 
qualities  which  fitted  him  for  direction  amid  such  conditions 
as  prevailed  in  the  new  State,  he  forged  to  the  front  and  became 
a  leader. 

I  will  not  say  that  lie  made  the  opportunities  for  the  acquire 
ment  of  wealth  and  distinction,  but  he  had  the  wisdom  and 
courage  to  seize  those  which  he  found.  It  was  by  his  partici 
pation  in  the  construction  of  a  transcontinental  railway  that 
he  acquired  the  greater  part  of  his  riches.  He  was  the  prime 
mover  in  this  grand  enterprise.  The  idea  of  connecting  and 
binding  together  the  two  oceans  with  bands  of  steel  did  not 
originate  with  him.  It  had  been  entertained  even  before  the 
cession  of  the  Golden  State  by  Mexico,  and  after  that  event 
the  subject  received  some  attention  in  the  American  Congress. 


118  Address  of  Mr,  Wise,  of  Virginia,  on  the 

The  advantages  to  flow  from  the  completion  of  that  great  proj 
ect  were  apparent  to  others  long  before  he  became  an  actor 
in  the  busy  scenes  of  life.  As  far  back  as  1832  its  accom 
plishment  became  the  object  of  the  anxious  thought  of  Hart- 
well  Carver,  of  New  York.  This  gentleman  spent  many  long 
and  anxious  years  and  many  thousands  of  dollars  in  efforts  to 
promote  the  scheme,  but  the  times  were  not  ripe  for  the  reali 
zation  of  this  bright  dream. 

The  stirring  events  which  culminated  in  civil  war  impressed 
upon  the  nation  the  supreme  importance  of  rapid  communica 
tion  between  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific.  The  difficulties  were 
great,  and  to  many  seemed  insurmountable,  but  the  necessity 
for  action  produced  the  firm  resolve  to  overcome  all  obstacles. 
A  long  and  trackless  desert  was  to  be  traversed,  and  the  snow 
capped  Sierra  stood  there  like  a  grim  sentinel  to  prevent  the 
passage.  This  would  have  seemed  an  impossible  task  to  any 
but  the  resolute  men  who  undertook  its  performance. 

His  account  of  the  beginning  of  the  enterprise  is  interesting, 
and  I  will  give  it  in  his  own  language: 

In  the  year  1860,  before  Congress  had  passed  any  act  looking  to  the  con 
struction  of  a  transcontinental  railroad,  a  few  gentlemen  living  in  Cali 
fornia  met  together,  and  as  a  result  of  their  meeting  concluded  to  have 
preliminary  surveys  made  over  the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains,  to  see  if  it 
were  possible  to  build  a  railroad  across  them.  Civil  engineers  had  declared 
that  it  was  not  practicable  to  build  a  road  over  these  mountains.  The 
result  of  that  exploration  was  that  a  road  could  be  built,  and  we  finally 
organized  a  company  in  1861  having  that  object  in  view. 

Mr.  Judah  was  the  engineer  upon  whose  advice  they  de 
pended  in  reaching  their  determination.  The  leaders  in  this 
great  movement  were  LELAND  STANFORD,  Collis  P.  Hunting- 
ton,  Charles  Crocker,  and  Mark  Hopkins.  To  them  is  chiefly 
due  the  credit  for  the  success  with  which  it  was  crowned. 

LELAND  STANFORD  turned  the  first  spadeful  of  dirt  in  this 

work  on  the  22d  day  of  February,  1803,  and  its  completion 
I 


Life  and  Character  of  Leland  Stanford.  119 

was  announced  at  Promontory  on  May  10, 1809,  by  his  driving 
a  golden  spike  with  a  silver  hammer.  Notwithstanding  his 
connection  with  the  construction  of  the  Central  Pacific  Rail 
way  and  other  large  enterprises,  he  found  time  for  attention 
to  affairs  of  state  and  participation  in  political  contests. 

He  was  elected  governor  of  California  in  18G1,  and  served 
in  that  position  for  the  period  of  two  years,  when  he  declined 
to  be  a  candidate  for  a  second  term.  Xo  greater  praise  could 
be  bestowed  upon  him  as  governor  of  his  imperial  State  than 
is  found  in  the  recital  of  the  fact  that  the  representatives  of 
both  parties  in  the  legislature  united  in  commending  his 
administration  as  honest,  able,  and  upright.  In  1885  he  was 
elected  to  the  Senate  of  the  United  States  and  continued  a 
member  of  that  body  until  his  death  in  June,  1893.  It  is  too 
early  to  speak  at  length  of  his  career  in  that  exalted  position. 
It  is  enough  to  say  that  he  was  regarded  as  a  strong  and  force 
ful  Senator,  true  to  all  the  high  trusts  committed  to  his  keep 
ing,  and  ever  faithful  in  the  discharge  of  all  his  duties. 

While  he  did  not  appear  often  in  debate,  he  was  an  impres 
sive  speaker,  being  always  earnest,  clear,  and  direct  in  the 
presentation  of  his  views.  The  chief  glory  of  his  life  was  in 
the  establishment  and  munificent  endowment  of  that  splendid 
seat  of  learning  which  bears  the  name  of  the  beloved  son  who 
preceded  him  to  the  undiscovered  country  beyond  the  grave. 
In  the  institution  of  this  university  for  the  intellectual,  moral, 
and  physical  development  and  training  of  the  youth  of  our 
country,  he  displayed  that  broad  conception  of  the  value  and 
importance  of  education  which  commands  our  highest  admira 
tion.  That  noble  woman,  who  was  the  tender  and  devoted 
partner  of  his  bosom,  and  who  shared  his  joys  and  sorrows, 
his  triumphs  and  defeats,  joined  in  this  magnificent  work,  and 
upon  her  devolves  the  sacred  duty  of  carrying  it  into  execu 
tion. 


120  Address  of  Mr.  Loud,  of  California,  on  the 

In  the  following  simple  words  spoken  to  a  friend  is  disclosed 
the  inspiration  of  their  generous  and  noble  benefaction :  "We 
are  happy  in  our  work.  We  do  not  feel  that  we  are  making 
great  sacrifices.  We  feel  that  we  are  working  with  and  for  the 
Almighty  Providence."  The  man  whose  deeds  have  their 
foundation  in  such  elevated  sentiments  must  be  regarded  as 
a  model  worthy  of  imitation.  He  did  not  use  power  for  selfish 
gratification,  but  rightly  considered  that  it  imposed  upon  him 
greater  responsibility. 

LELAND  STANFORD  was  a  broad-gauged,  liberal,  and  patri 
otic  citizen,  whose  name  and  fame  are  dear  to  his  countrymen. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  LOUD,  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

Mr.  SPEAKER:  My  personal  acquaintance  with  Governor 
STANFORD  (for  by  that  title  he  has  been  familiarly  and,  I  might 
add,  affectionately  known  in  California)  was  limited  to  the 
ordinary  business  and  social  courtesies  that  usually  prevail 
between  members  from  the  same  State;  but  no  man  who  has 
resided  upon  the  Pacific  Slope  can  help  but  feel  that  he  has 
known  him  intimately  and  well  always.  His  close  identifica 
tion  with  the  interests  and  prosperity  of  the  coast,  his  early 
and  prominent  wrork  in  the  ranks  of  the  then  struggling  Re 
publican  party  marked  him  as  a  fearless  leader  of  independent 
thought  and  fearless  men.  Early  in  life  was  demonstrated 
that  prominent  trait  of  character  which  was  closely  adhered 
to  until  the  end,  and  it  can  be  truthfully  said  that  whatever 
he  believed  to  be  right  he  never  feared  to  do.  In  many  respects 
he  was  a  benefactor  of  the  human  race.  His  affiliation  with 
the  Free  Soil  and  Republican  parties  clearly  showed  that  he 
loved  justice,  freedom,  and  mankind  more  than  the  plaudits  of 
liis  fellow-men,  for  in  those  days  to  be  a  Republican  was  to 


Life  and  Character  of  Le land  Stanford.  121 

suffer  the  scoffs  and  scorn  of  the  large  majority  of  oar  Western 

society. 

LELAND  STANFORD  was  not  a  perfect  man.  That  work 
seems  beyond  the  power,  wisdom,  or  at  least  the  desire  of  the 
Almighty  to  create;  but  in  many  of  the  qualities  which  go  to 
make  the  man  he  surpassed  the  large  majority  of  mankind. 
While  he  created  and  acquired  a  great  fortune,  he  never  used 
the  vast  means  at  his  command  to  oppress  those  who  had 
helped  create  that  wealth.  He  never  sought  his  fellow-man  as 
his  prey.  The  man  who  held  the  throttle  of  the  locomotive; 
he  who  handled  the  train,  worked  the  brake,  laid  the  rail,  or 
shoveled  the  sand  was  his  comrade,  friend,  and  equal.  His 
life,  as  I  have  observed  it,  was  one  of  tender,  thoughtful  com 
passion  for  the  man  less  fortunate  in  life  than  himself.  Those 
who  have  associated  with  him  for  many  years ;  those  who  have 
been  in  his  employ  had  at  his  hands  always  received  courteous 
treatment,  a  patient  hearing,  the  result  of  which  was  not  alone 
a  word  of  cheer,  but  substantial  relief.  If  a  wrong  had  been 
done,  it  was  quickly  remedied  upon  the  lines  of  justice,  equity, 
and  generosity.  No  employe  of  his  had  ever  been  denied  the 
sacred  right  of  petition  and,  higher  and  above  all,  redress. 

The  events  of  his  life,  from  the  farm  on  which  he  was  born, 
through  early  struggles  to  the  splendors  of  worldly  success, 
have  been  portrayed,  and  I  will  not  dwell  upon  them.  Suffice 
it  to  say  that  he  was  reared  in  the  school  of  hardship  and 
struggle  in  which  is  created  the  incentive  to  aspire. 

The  exercise  of  his  youth  was  but  an  incentive  to  conquer, 
and  he  went  forth  well  armed  and  equipped  to  meet  the  battle 
of  life.  So  well  fitted  was  he  to  march  in  the  very  front  of 
conquest  that  he  early  in  life  sought  the  van  of  civilization  in 
the  far  West,  and  it  was  in  that  field,  at  a  time  when  the  Argo 
nauts  looked  for  manhood  and  stability  of  character,  regard 
less  of  what  his  antecedents  and  early  traditions  may  have 


122          Address  of  Mr,  Loud,  of  California,  on  the 

been,  that  lie  was  early  marked  as  a  leader  of  thought,  action, 
and  men.  I  can  not  better  illustrate  the  conditions  by  which 
he  was  surrounded  than  by  reciting  a  short  sketch  of  his  early 
life  from  the  pen  of  his  old  associate,  Capt.  X.  T.  Smith : 

At  this  early  day,  both  at  Cold  Springs  and  at  Michigan  Bluff,  Governor 
STANFORD,  in  an  unusual  degree  commanded  the  respect  of  the  heteroge 
neous  lot  of  men  who  composed  the  mining  classes,  and  was  frequently 
referred  to  by  them  as  a  sort  of  an  arbitrator  in  settling  their  disputes  for 
them.  While  at  Michigan  Bluffs  he  was  elected  a  justice  of  the  peace, 
which  office  was  the  court  before  which  all  disputes  and  contentions  of 
the  miners  and  their  claims  were  settled.  It  is  a  singular  fact,  with  all 
the  questions  that  came  before  him  for  settlement,  not  one  of  them  was 
appealed  to  a  higher  court. 

LELAND  STANFORD  was  at  this  time  just  ;is  gentle  in  his  manner  and 
as  cordial  and  respectful  to  all  as  in  his  later  years.  Yet  he  was  possessed 
of  a  courage  which,  when  tested,  as  occasion  sometimes  required,  satis 
fied  the  rough  element  that  lie  was  a  man  who  was  not  to  be  imposed  upon. 
His  principle  seemed  to  be  to  stand  up  for  the  right  at  all  times.  This  was 
so  well  recognized  by  all  with  whom  he  came  in  contact  that  when  act 
ing  as  an  arbitrator  his  decisions  were  seldom  questioned. 

In  these  early  California!!  days,  especially  in  the  mining  districts,  there 
was  nothing  to  restrain  men  in  the  exercise  of  their  natural  impulses  and 
from  following  out  the  instincts  of  their  natures.  There  was  no  society 
and  but  little  restraint  upon  the  individual.  Yet  at  this  time,  as  I  have 
indicated,  Mr.  STANFORD  exhibited  the  same  gentle  instincts  which  char 
acterized  Ins  after  life.  He  never  indulged  in  profanity  or  coarse  words  of 
any  kind,  and  was  as  considerate  in  his  conduct  when  holding  intercourse 
with  the  rough  element  as  though  in  the  midst  of  the  highest  refinement. 
This  was  particularly  noticeable  to  all  who  met  him. 

He  was  the  first  Republican  in  the  State  of  California  to  be 
elected  to  a  State  office,  and  filled  the  office  of  governor  for  the 
two  years  of  1861-'63,  at  which  period  the  passions  of  men 
were  incited  to  the  highest  point;  reason  had  almost  aban 
doned  even  the  most  conservative  men;  friends  and  families 
were  divided  upon  the  great  question  of  a  united  country; 
bloodshed  ami  riot  had  been  no  uncommon  event,  and  was 


Life  and  Character  of  Lc land  Stanford.  123 

still  threatened  in  almost  every  hamlet;  but  his  administration 
was  conducted  in  such  a  firm,  just,  and  honest  manner  as  to  dis 
arm  and  quiet  his  adversaries.  At  the  same  time  he  merited 
and  received  the  approbation  of  all  Union-loving  men,  and 
even  the  admiration  of  the  rebel  and  Southern  element,  then 
proportionately  so  numerous  all  over  the  State.  This  respect 
and  admiration  he  held  to  the  day  of  his  death,  and  probably 
no  man  in  the  State  numbered  among  his  friends  so  many  of 
the  late  secession  element  as  the  governor.  He  was  at  that 
period  what  you  found  him  here. 

While  a  firm  believer  in  the  perpetuity  of  this  country  as  a 
strong,  united  nation,  he  understood  human  nature  and  the 
motives  that  control  men.  Knowing  they  had  been  driven  into 
the  course  they  followed,  from  environment,  education,  and 
association,  he  well  knew  that  the  latent  good  sense  and  patri 
otism  of  the  American  in  them  would,  under  favorable  con 
ditions,  assert  itself.  He  discussed  issues  calmly  with  men, 
never  governed  by  passion  or  prejudice.  These  great  quali 
ties  were  the  marked  characteristics  of  the  man,  which  stamped 
him  as  one  high  in  the  esteem  of  all  with  whom  he  came  in 
contact.  I  have  said  before  that  Senator  STANFORD  was  not 
a  perfect  man,  but  a  man  of  whom  it  can  truthfully  be  said: 
He  was  of  great  benefit  to  mankind.  At  this  hour  some  see 
him  as  one  who  had  been  at  the  focus  of  adverse  criticism  for 
a  quarter  of  a  century,  but  to  those  who  have  known  him  is 
now  clear  the  thought,  as  it  will  be  in  history  to  come,  that 
LELAND  STANFORD  was  in  more  respects  than  falls  to  the  lot 
of  ordinary  mortals  a  great  and  good  man  —  a  benefactor  of 
the  human  race. 

There  is  nothing  more  beautiful  in  life  than  our  custom  of 
strewing  flowers  on  the  graves  of  the  dead,  and  no  words  are 
better  uttered  than  those  that  speak  well  of  them.  Some  of 
our  associates  on  this  floor  have  regarded  as  futile  our  prac- 


124          Address  of  Mr.  Loud,  of  California,  on  the 

tice  of  meeting  in  solemn  conclave  to  pay  a  tribute  of  respect 
and  affection  to  the  departed;  yet  their  words  were  lightly 
spoken,  Mr.  Speaker,  and  did  not  spring  from  their  hearts; 
for  I  have  seen  these  same  Kepresentatives,  sitting  with  bowed 
heads  and  tear-bedimmed  eyes;  have  heard  them  utter  such 
words  as  the  eloquence  of  death  only  can  inspire.  So,  there 
is  not  one  among  us  here  to-day  who  in  his  heart  begrudges 
the  time  spent  in  doing  reverence  to  the  dead;  for  soon  conies 
the  reflection  that  some  other  among  us,  even  in  the  twinkling 
of  an  eye,  may  pass  out  into  the  great  unknown. 

Mr.  Speaker,  there  is  little  that  I  can  say  of  Mr.  STANFORD'S 
life  that  is  not  familiar  to  you  all.  From  one  ocean  to  the  other 
he  was  known  by  the  people  only  as  a  man  who  had  amassed 
great  wealth;  yet  by  those  of  us  who  knew  him  well  he  was 
admired,  respected,  and  loved  for  qualities  of  both  mind  and 
heart;  and  God's  poor  among  us  remember  him  best  of  all. 
As  one  of  his  fellow  Senators  well  said :  "  If  each  one  to  whom 
he  had  done  a  good  deed  would  lay  a  leaf  upon  his  grave, 
Mr.  STANFORD  would  sleep  to-night  beneath  a  mountain  of 
foliage." 

Wise  philosophers  have  said  that  all  is  vanity.  It  is,  indeed, 
a  predominant  attribute  of  human  nature.  Yet  there  is  love, 
too;  there  is  something  in  that. 

.  Mr.  STANFORD  never  made  a  vain  or  lavish  display  of  his 
wealth,  yet  he  distributed  it  among  the  needy  with  a  gen 
erous  hand.  He  was  ambitious  to  be  highly  honored  among 
men,  and  it  is  said  even  aspired  to  the  highest  office  within  the 
people's  gift;  yet  there  was  not  in  him  the  stern  stuff  of  which 
ambition  should  be  made.  He  never  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  the 
distressed  cries  of  the  poor.  He  erected  during  his  life  and 
bequeathed  at  his  death  a  splendid  free  institution  of  learn 
ing;  yet  it  was  not  his  vanity  that  gave  the  institution  its 
name.  It  was  paternal  affection.  His  grief  over  the  death 


Life  and  Character  of  Lcland  Stanford.  125 

of  an  only  son  was  so  poignant  that  all  hearts  were  touched. 
The  boy  was  his  delight;  the  pride  of  the  household;  the 
object  of  all  his  and  the  fond  mother's  anticipations  for  the 
future;  the  deserved  heir  to  their  millions.  Here  was  in  real 
life  a  pathetic  analogue  to  the  story  of  Dombey  and  Sou. 
And  when  they  laid  the  youth  in  his  grave  the  manifesta 
tion  of  grief  bjr  father  and  mother  touched  the  hearts  of  all 
men,  for  love  is  found  within  the  portals  of  the  rich  man's 
palace  as  well  as  in  the  humblest  cottage  of  us  all. 

Mr.  Speaker,  on  every  side  are  reared  enduring  monuments 
of  brass  and  marble  to  perpetuate  the  achievements  of  men. 
Some  of  the  world's  famous  and  great  ones,  long  since  passed 
away,  were  laid  in  their  shallow  graves  with  all  the  pomp  and 
circumstance  that  vanity  inspires.  Martial  music  and  flying 
banners  have  proclaimed  the  death  of  the  world's  truly  great. 
Lives  have  gone  out  in  a  blaze  of  glory — men  renowned  in  state 
craft,  art,  literature,  and  war.  Splendid  monuments  and  pages 
of  history  commemorate  the  achievements  of  a  French  soldier 
whose  genius  changed  the  map  of  a  continent;  a  man  whose 
indomitable  spirit  overawed  the  monarchs  of  all  Europe;  a 
student  of  literature,  a  devotee  of  art,  skilled  in  diplomacy, 
able  in  statecraft,  selfish,  cold,  intellectual,  and  ambitious,  he 
sought  the  bubble  reputation  even  at  the  cannon's  mouth. 
Yet  when  he  was  carried  to  the  grave  with  martial  music, 
flying  banners,  and  acclamations  from  thousands  few  wept 
for  him. 

And  so  it  is  throughout  life,  Mr.  Speaker.  The  character  of 
the  procession  that  follows  us  to  the  grave  proclaims  the  vir 
tues  of  our  lives.  Hundreds  of  lowly  and  humble  ones  wept 
over  Mr.  STANFORD'S  grave,  and  yet  remember  him  in  their 
prayers;  and  though  the  pages  of  history  may  record  no  great 
deeds  of  his  life,  yet  will  he  be  remembered  in  the  plain  and 
simple  annals  of  the  poor  when  others  of  greater  achievements 
and  wider  fame  have  long  since  been  forgotten. 


126  Address  of  Mr.  Loud,  of  California, 

Who  among  us  would  ask  more?  'Tis  the  sum  of  life  to  be 
lovingly  remembered  by  our  friends  and  associates,  and  I  for 
my  part  would  not  rest  content  with  laurel  merely  on  my  grave ; 
I  would  rather  have  a  wreath  of  myrtle  and  immortelles,  with 
a  tribute  of  sincere  affection — a  few  simple  words — wrought  in 
forget-me-nots;  a  sentiment  that  recalls  to  my  mind  the  most 
touching  scene  of  the  many  witnessed  when  we  met  to  pay  the 
last  sad  homage  and  tribute  of  respect  to  his  memory,  eight  of 
the  oldest  engineers,  bearing  gently  and  fondly,  with  bowed 
heads,  slow  and  mea'sured  step,  with  their  strong  arms  and 
hands,  all  that  was  earthly  of  him  who  had  been  in  life  their 
friend,  LELAND  STANFORD. 

This  was  no  service  or  tribute,  but  the  voluntary  mark  of 
esteem  paid  by  those  who  had  known  that  in  him  their  confi 
dence  had  never  been  misplaced ;  and  as  they  gently  laid  him 
beneath  the  granite,  the  home  of  all  that  was  earthly,  within 
sight  of  the  spot  where  he  had  spent  so  many  of  his  pleasant 
hours;  that  homestead  where  he  had  reared  and  nurtured  the 
light  of  his  life  and  hope  of  his  declining  years — his  son— 
I  could  almost  hear  those  strong  men  whisper,  "iSTever  more! 
Never  more  shall  we  look  upon  his  like  again." 

And  then,  in  accordance  with  the  resolution  previously 
adopted,  the  House  (at  4  o'clock  and  15  minutes  p.  in.)  adjourned. 


O 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below, 
or  on  the  date  to  which  renewed.  Renewals  only: 

Tel.  No.  642-3405 

Renewals  may  be  made  4  days  prior  to  date  due. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


1962 


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«EC(DLI4UG  IPM81 

AN  2  4  197218 


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General  Library 


LD  21A-60m-3,  65 
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^General 
University 


VERAL  LIBRARY  -  U.C.  BERKELEY 


Boooaioait 


LIBRARY 


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